Political parties in the Maghrib: ideology and identification. A suggested typology

Abstract

Maghribi political parties and the party systems in which they operate are clearly different from those in the West. One difference is the weakness of traditional western‐style ideological divisions between parties. Ideological divisions do nevertheless exist between political parties in Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco but relate to different issues. They can be summarised as differing viewpoints over the role of religion in the state; the role of minority identities in the state; and most importantly, the continued centralisation of political power in the state. It is differences on these questions that provide a general typology of political parties that distinguish themselves from each other on these points. On this basis the paper examines firstly, parties based upon Islamist ideas, secondly, parties associated with the Berber population, and finally and most importantly, parties that are either supportive of or in opposition to the existing political order and rulers. It is argued that it is this final division between ‘regime’ and ‘opposition’ that is the most crucial and overrides all other distinctions. Having established this basic typology, the paper will also look at more general issues such as party structure and social and geographic bases of support of parties.