23 September 2026 legislative elections: the PAM comes first with 97 seats
In the 23 September 2026 elections, the PAM came first with 97 of 395 seats, its first win since its founding.
On Wednesday 23 September 2026, Moroccans elected the 395 members of the House of Representatives. The Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), whose electoral symbol is the tractor and whose collegial leadership is coordinated by Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, came first with 97 seats, the first time it has topped a legislative election since its founding in 2008. Six days later, His Majesty King Mohammed VI appointed Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri Head of Government.
The results
The official campaign ran from 10 to 22 September 2026. There were 15.8 million registered voters, and turnout was 38.08%. A majority in the House of Representatives requires 198 seats. The final results, identical to the provisional ones, break down as follows:
| Party | 2026 | 2021 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) | 97 | 87 | +10 |
| National Rally of Independents (RNI) | 66 | 102 | −36 |
| Istiqlal | 65 | 81 | −16 |
| Justice and Development Party (PJD) | 54 | 13 | +41 |
| Popular Movement (MP) | 29 | 28 | +1 |
| Socialist Union of Popular Forces (USFP) | 26 | 34 | −8 |
| Party of Progress and Socialism (PPS) | 19 | 22 | −3 |
| Constitutional Union (UC) | 17 | 18 | −1 |
| Other parties | 22 | 10 | +12 |
| Total | 395 | 395 |
“Other parties” covers 22 seats in 2026, including 8 for the Democratic and Social Movement (MDS). Turnout: 38.08% of 15.8 million registered voters. Compared with the results of 8 September 2021.
A first for the PAM
With 97 seats, up from 87 in 2021, the PAM gained 10 seats. Above all, it finished first in a legislative election for the first time since its founding in 2008: it had come second in 2016, with 102 seats, and again in 2021, with 87.
On the regional lists, the PAM was the only party to pass one million votes, with 1,065,371.
The result had been long in the making. In an interview with the MAP news agency on 21 September 2026, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri explained that the party’s electoral committee had spent 15 months assessing candidates in every constituency. The party also fielded 38 candidates standing under its colours for the first time.
The PAM campaigned on its 2027-2031 programme, “To change course. One word!”, presented on 1 September 2026. Built around five charters, it contains twenty measurable commitments, at an estimated additional cost of about MAD 350 billion over five years. In the same interview, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri described it as a five-year contract with the citizen.
A seat in Marrakech for Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri
Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri headed the PAM list in the Marrakech Médina-Sidi Youssef Ben Ali constituency and was elected to the House. According to the preliminary count, with 97.59% counted, her list came first with 12,596 votes. The PAM came first in all three of Marrakech’s city constituencies. In 2021, the list she led in the same constituency had also come first, with 16,136 votes. First elected to the House of Representatives in 2011, she had been re-elected in 2016 and again in 2021, before this new victory in her home city.
More women in the House
The vote also brought more women into Parliament. The new House of Representatives has 107 women members, or 27.09% of the seats, up from 24.3% in 2021. Seventeen women won local-constituency seats, compared with six in 2021. Seven of them are PAM members, including Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri. These gains are covered in our article Women in leadership: a path of firsts.
The day after the vote
At a press conference in Rabat on 24 September 2026, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri spoke about the prospect of an appointment:
“If His Majesty the King entrusted me with the responsibility of Head of Government, it would be a great honour for me.”
Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, press conference, Rabat, 24 September 2026 (translated from French)
On the same occasion, she stressed the importance of staying in touch with citizens:
“A party that leads the government cannot fail to communicate with Moroccans.”
Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, press conference, Rabat, 24 September 2026 (translated from French)
She also said the party would give priority to young people, in order to restore their trust in politics.
On 29 September 2026, six days after the vote, His Majesty King Mohammed VI appointed her Head of Government under Article 47 of the Constitution: it is the first time the PAM has been called on to lead a government. Upon her appointment, she announced consultations, first within the PAM and then with all political parties. Read our article on her appointment as Morocco’s first woman Head of Government, and an overview of the PAM’s 2027-2031 programme.
Discover the PAM, its history and its programmeThe 2027-2031 programme in detail
Sources
- Maroc.ma, “2026 legislative elections: PAM leads with 97 seats, according to preliminary results” (opens in a new tab)
- Yabiladi, “2026 legislative elections in Morocco: final results confirm the PAM’s victory” (in French) (opens in a new tab)
- Belpresse, “The PAM dominates the regional vote with over one million votes” (in French) (opens in a new tab)
- Hespress English, “In numbers: Morocco’s new parliament sees more women” (opens in a new tab)
- LeSiteInfo, “Fatima Zahra El Mansouri wins a seat in Marrakech” (in French) (opens in a new tab)
- Wikipedia, “2021 Moroccan general election” (opens in a new tab)
