2. Introduction
• The political system of Jordan functions in a structure of a parliamentary monarchy, where the PM of Jordan serves as head of government, and of a
multi-party system.
• Jordan is a constitutional monarchy based on the constitution of January 8, 1952.
• As of 1 February 2011, Jordanian PM Samir Rifai stepped down, and KingAbdullah asked Marouf Bakhit, an ex-PM, to form a less authoritarian
government.
3. Major leaders of Jordan
Major leaders of Jordan
• Government: Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
• King: Abdullah II
• Prime Minister: Abdullah Ensour
• Legislature: Parliament
• Upper house: Senate
• Lower house: Chamber of Deputies
Parliament of Jordan
4. Executive Branch
Executive Branch
• Main office holders
• Office: King
• Name: Abdullah II of Jordan
• Party: No party
• Since: 7 February 1999
• Office: Prime Minister
• Name: Abdullah Ensour
• Party: No party
• Since: 11 October 2012
Executive Authority
• Executive authority is vested in the king and his cabinet.
• The king signs, implements, or rejects all laws.
• The king may even suspend or dissolve parliament, and reduce or extend the term of session.
• A two-thirds vote of both houses of parliament may overrule the king’s veto at his discretion,
most recently in November 2009.
• The king nominates (and may discharge) all judges through ruling, approves modifications to
the constitution, declares war, and commands the armed forces.
• Cabinet decisions, court judgments, and the national currency are given in the king’s name.
• The Cabinet, directed by a PM, was once nominated by the king, but King Abdullah agreed to
an elected cabinet after the 2011 Jordanian protests.
• With respect to issues of general policy, the cabinet's responsibility is the Chamber of
Deputies, who can be obliged to resign by a two-thirds “no confidence” vote.
5. Legislative Branch
• Legislative power rests in the bicameral National Assembly (Majlis al-Umma), which has two chambers.
• The Chamber of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwaab) has 150 members who are elected to four-year terms in single-seat electorates with fifteen seats saved for women by a
distinctive electoral college.
• Additionally, nine seats are saved for Christians; three seats are saved for Chechans/Circassians.
• Even though the people elect the Chamber of Deputies, its primary legislative abilities are restricted to approving, vetoing, or revising legislation with little power to initiate
laws.
• The Assembly of Senators (Majlis al-Aayan) has sixty members who are nominated by the king for a four-year term; responsible to the Chamber of Deputies, the Assembly of
Senators can be removed by a “vote of no confidence”.
• Political groups or coalitions in the Jordanian parliament change with every parliamentary election; one of the following affiliations are generally involved: a democratic
Marxist/Socialist group, a typical liberal group, a moderate-pragmatic group, a typical conservative group, and an extreme right-wing group, like the Islamic Action Front.
• The Jordanian Chamber of Deputies is known for its fights between its members, such as acts of violence and the use of firearms.
• Representative Talal al-Sharif attempted to shoot one of his own associates with an assault rifle while at the parliamentary premises in September 2013.
6. Judicial Branch
• The judiciary is entirely independent of the other two branches of the government.
• The constitution permits three categories of courts – civil (meaning “regular” in this case), religious, and special.
• Regular courts is made up of both civil and criminal variations at the first level – First Instance or Conciliation Courts, second level – Appellate or Appeals Courts, and
the Cassation Court, which is Jordan’s most supreme judicial authority.
• There are two kinds of religious courts: Sharia courts, which impose the provisions of Islamic law and civil status, and courts of other religious communities formally
recognized in Jordan.
7. Political Conditions
• From 1953-1999, King Hussein was the King of Jordan, during which he resisted several challenges to his reign, drawing on the devotion of his army, and serving as an icon of
unity and strength for both the East Bank and Palestinian communities in Jordan.
• In 1991, King Hussein abolished martial law, legalizing political parties the following year.
• 1989 and 1993 saw free and fair parliamentary elections, but Islamist parties refused to participate in the 1997 elections over controversial amendments in the election law.
• Following King Hussein’s death in February 1999, his son Abdullah succeeded him.
• Abdullah immediately vowed to renew Jordan’s peace treaty with Israel and its relations with the United States.
• During his first year as king, Abdullah also changed the government’s focus to economic improvement.
• Jordan’s ongoing significant economic hardships, growing population, and more open political atmosphere paved the way for a variety of political parties.
• The Parliament of Jordan, moving toward more independence, has examined accusations of wrong doing against numerous régime officials; the parliament has become the
key setting in which opposing political beliefs, like those of political Islamists, are expressed.
• It was announced on February 1, 2012 (exactly a year after Samir Rifai resigned as PM) that King Abdullah discharged his government; this has been seen as a pre-emptive
move in the context of the Tunisian Jasmine Revolution and related events in nearby Egypt.
8. Decentralization
• King Abdullah II and the Government of Jordan started the process of decentralization, with the Madaba governorate as the experimental plan, on the regional level dividing
the country into three regions: North, Central, and South.
• The Greater Amman Municipality, though not included in the plan, will create a similar decentralization process.
• Each region will be ruled by an elected assembly that will deal with the area’s political, social, legal, and economic matters.
• This decentralization process falls under Jordan’s Democratization Program.
9. Corruption
• According to Transparency International, Jordan is one of the world’s most corrupt nations.
• In the Corruption Perceptions Index, Jordan was ranked 47th out of 180 countries.
• Jordan’s Constitution says that no member of Parliament can have commercial or corporate ties to the government, and that no member of the royal family can serve in
government.
• Yet in spite of some progress towards more freedom, Jordan still suffers from corruption.
• The Anti-Corruption Commission investigates cases of corruption and submits them to the judiciary for legal action.
• Corruption in Jordan takes the form of favoritism, bias, and inducement.
10. Administrative Divisions
Administrative Divisions
• Administratively, Jordan is divided into twelve governorates (muhafazat, singular—
muhafazah), each one led by a governor nominated by the king.
• They are the only authorities for all government departments and development projects in
their corresponding regions.
• 1. Aljun 8. Zarqa
• 2. Aqaba 9. Irbid
• 3. Balqa 10. Jerash
• 4. Karak 11. Ma’an
• 5. Mafraq 12. Madaba
• 6. Amman
• 7. Tafilah
Map
11. Abdullah II
Abdullah II
• Born 30 January 1962 in Amman.
• Reigning King of Jordan; ascended the throne on 7 February 1999 upon his father King Hussein’s death.
• His mother is Princess Muna al-Hussein.
• Is a member of the Hashemite family.
• Was born to King Hussein during King Hussein’s marriage to British-born Muna al-Hussein (born Antoinette Avril Gardiner).
• Was the king’s oldest son; consequently, he was heir apparent to the throne of Jordan, according to the 1952 constitution.
• Because of insecure times, however, King Hussein ended up nominating his brother, Prince Hassan bin Talal, as his successor.
• Attended St Edmund’s School, Hindhead, Surrey, after which he moved on to Eaglebrook School and Deerfield Academy in Deerfield,
Massachusetts.
• Joined the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 1980, was assigned as a Second Lieutenant, and served as a troop leader in 13th/18th Royal
Hussars; took command of Jordan’s Special Forces in 1993.
• Went to Pembroke College at Oxford University in 1982, completing a one-year Special Studies course in Middle Eastern Affairs.
• Went to the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. in 1987; later, he served in the
Jordanian forces and became Major General in May 1998.
• In the 1980s, King Hussein thought about arranging for his brother to succeed him (and then his son Prince Ali bin Al Hussein), only to
change his mind by 1992; though he honestly considered nominating one of his nephews as his successor, he named Abdullah as his
successor on 25 January 1999 as he lay on his deathbed.
Photo
12. Abdullah Ensour
Abdullah Ensour
• Born 20 January 1939 (in what was Transjordan) in Salt.
• Jordanian economist and PM of Jordan since 11 October 2012.
• Veteran statesman and politician; occupied different cabinet posts throughout his
political career.
• Studied at the American University in Beirut and in the United States.
• Also acquired his PhD in economics in Sorbonne; also has a PhD in mathematics.
Photo
