Morocco’s King Mohammed VI on Tuesday appointed Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri as prime minister, making her the first woman to lead the government in the North African kingdom’s history, after her party topped last week’s parliamentary election.
The royal palace said El Mansouri, a 50-year-old lawyer who serves as urban planning minister and previously spent years as mayor of Marrakesh, was tasked with forming a new government. She becomes the second woman to lead a government in the Arab world, after Najla Bouden’s tenure as Tunisia’s prime minister between October 2021 and August 2023.
El Mansouri’s centre-right Authenticity and Modernity Party, known as PAM, won 97 of the 395 seats in the House of Representatives in the September 23 vote, 31 seats ahead of its nearest rival, though the election was marked by low turnout. Under Morocco’s constitution, the king holds ultimate authority over major state decisions but is required to select the prime minister from the party that wins the most parliamentary seats, a rule introduced following constitutional changes in 2011.
In a televised address, El Mansouri called her appointment historic, saying it marked the first time a woman had taken on the responsibility of leading Morocco’s government. Abdelilah Benkirane, a former prime minister whose Justice and Development Party won 54 seats, said his party would remain in opposition and alleged the vote was tainted by fraud, without providing supporting details. The Federation of Democratic Left has also said it will not join a coalition government.
El Mansouri, who joined PAM at its founding in 2008 under Fouad Ali El Himma, a close adviser to the king, is expected to spend the coming days negotiating a coalition. Her incoming government will oversee billions of dollars in infrastructure investment tied to the 2030 FIFA World Cup, which Morocco is set to co-host with Spain and Portugal, while facing pressure to address unemployment and the rising cost of living.
