In Morocco's election race, a rural funeral has become an unexpected campaign stop for candidates aiming to engage disenchanted young voters SIDI MOUSSA EL MAJDOUB, Morocco -- A funeral in rural Morocco for an elderly woman became an unlikely campaign stop for candidates trying to motivate disenchanted young voters ahead of parliamentary elections Wednesday. Moroccan young people’s struggles to find jobs and opportunity drove Gen Z-led protests last year and a surge of migration to Spain’s Ceuta this summer. Candidates like Yassine Moujane see youth concerns as central to the campaign for Wednesday’s vote.
The candidates paid condolences, listened to grievances — and quietly asked for votes. Some mourners welcomed their pledges and attention, while others remained skeptical. Moujane is among the youngest candidates in the elections, running with the Democratic and Social Movement, a pro-establishment party.
He has two small children. Moroccan voters will choose from among 7,288 candidates from 27 political parties competing for 395 seats in the House of Representatives, and the next prime minister will come from the party that wins the most seats. The vote will be the first since the deadly youth-led protests nearly a year ago and a mass attempt to cross Morocco’s borders into the Spanish territory of Ceuta.
Young Moroccans were among the dozens of people who died trying to reach Ceuta, including a factory worker seeking a better job to pay his mother’s medical bills, a struggling soccer player and a high school student dreaming of a better future, according to AP interviews with their families and friends. The next government will be under the global spotlight as it will oversee billions of dollars in infrastructure and development projects as Morocco prepares to co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup. But it will face more immediate domestic challenges: addressing inflation and unemployment, and showing young Moroccans that the country’s economic transformation can translate into higher incomes and improved public services.
Morocco has developed a large automotive and aeronautics industry and its high-speed rail network is expanding. Tanger Med port has become a major global container hub. The World Bank expects Morocco's gross domestic product to expand by 4.2% this year, but the growth has not generated enough jobs.
The gap is particularly stark for young people. Official data put Morocco’s unemployment at 13% in 2025, but the rate among people aged 15 to 24 was 37%, while unemployment among higher-education graduates stood at 19%. They only care about their own interests,” said Yassine Hasnaoui, a 28-year-old unemployed man from Sidi Moussa El Majdoub.
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