RABAT, Morocco: The king of Morocco on Tuesday named Marrakesh mayor Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri the country’s first woman prime minister, the royal cabinet announced, after her party won last week’s parliamentary elections.
Her Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) had dominated the vote, winning 97 out of 395 seats in the House of Representatives — 31 more than the next closest competitor.
The royal cabinet said King Mohammed VI has now tasked the 50-year-old, who also served as housing minister, with “forming the new government”.
#Maroc 🇲🇦 – Sa Majesté le Roi Mohammed VI, que Dieu l’assiste, a nommé Mme Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri Cheffe du gouvernement. pic.twitter.com/WCPr2Wnj94 pic.twitter.com/8GpibgtFCd
— Morocco News 🇲🇦 (@MoroccoNews) September 29, 2026
Without an outright majority, the PAM will have to form a coalition with other parties for its five-year tenure.
The PAM was founded in 2008 by current royal advisor Fouad Ali El Himma.
El Mansouri was also the first woman to serve as mayor of Marrakesh, winning the office in 2009 before losing it six years later, then retaking it again in 2021.
‘Restore hope’
El Mansouri’s cabinet will have to tackle several pressing issues including unemployment and living costs, as well as persistent social disparities, particularly weighing on young people.
“Young people are going through a crisis and we must provide them with answers,” she said during the campaign. “We want to restore their hope, not only through speeches, but through concrete solutions.”
Her party has pledged average annual economic growth of five percent, inflation of two percent and the creation of at least one million new jobs over its five-year term.
The PAM was followed in the polls by the National Rally of Independents (RNI), which heads the outgoing coalition and won 66 seats.
The Istiqlal party came third with 65 seats, while the opposition’s Justice and Development Party (PJD) took 54 seats.
The PJD made significant gains after winning just 13 seats in 2021, having focused its campaign in part on fighting corruption.
Its chief, former prime minister Abdelilah Benkirane, hailed a “victory” but ruled out joining a coalition led by the PAM.
