The UOP Educational Sciences Department hosted Dr. Ali Maharmeh, political sciences professor, to discuss "New Elections Law for 2016" with a number of the University students.
Dr. Maharmeh discussed the most significant legislations and the history and development of political work in Jordan, reviewing elections-related legislations and laws that were an integral part of the Jordanian Constitution.
"Since the return to parliamentary life in 1990s, there have been several attempts to amend Elections Law with the aim of serving political work and democracy in Jordan. Today, the recently endorsed Elections Law divides the Kingdom into 23 electoral districts, with 130 seats, consisting of 115 seats for deputies and 15 seats for a women’s quota in addition to what is commonly referred to as the proportional list," Dr. Maharmeh added.
Dr. Maharmeh urged young people to participate in the upcoming elections actively. "Parties’ representation in the Jordanian parliament is not strong. For that reason, the new law was developed on the basis of forming a proportional list of candidates who share the same intellectual, political or social views," he added.
Under the new law, the proportional list must include no less than three candidates and does not exceed the number of seats allocated for the constituency in which the list is competing.
Dr. Maharmeh reviewed the voting mechanism under the new law, where each eligible voter can only pick one list and has then to name the candidate(s) he/she has chosen from the list.
Dr. Nermin Ghawanmeh, the lecture facilitator, pointed out that hosting this lecture at the University of Petra (UOP) highlights the Universities' commitment to serve the local community.
"Given that parliamentary elections aim to promote reform and democracy and serve citizens and state, it is hopefully that the upcoming elections will lead to elect a group of deputies who can inculcate democratic values and social justice. The New Elections Law is different from one-person/one-vote Former Elections Law. It contains some points which need illustration and interpretation for the students to vote accurately and impartiality," she added.