Elections 2026: the profiles to invest in for elected officials serving citizens and democracy

Karim Tajmember of the PPS political bureau, extends this line by returning to a central distinction: that which separates, without opposing them, the local elected official and the national elected official. The first acts as close as possible to daily life, within the framework of local authorities – municipalities, provinces, prefectures and regions. Its field is that of local services, development, equipmentof transportationof thewaterof theelectricityfrom the health or eveneducation. The second exercises a national mission: legislate, amend, propose texts and control government action.

But for Karim Taj, this national mission never erases territorial roots. A parliamentarian remains linked to the territory which supported him. From this articulation arises a profile requirement: seriousness, competence, probity, proximity to citizens and capacity for advocacy. It is this vision that the PPS aims to embody through its investitures. It is about presenting women and men capable of presenting credible alternatives, mastering issues and establishing a relationship of trust with citizens. In other words, qualify the human offer as much as the programmatic offer.

There training therefore appears to be a primordial necessity. The discussions also insisted on the qualification of elected officials and candidates, in connection with the work carried out by the PPS Academy and the measures supported by the local party structures. The issue goes beyond the technical preparation of an election. It refers to a broader conviction: a party does not prepare for elections through organization alone, but through political trainingideological and institutional of its executives, particularly young people.

This requirement is consistent with the analysis of Karima Ragoubaprofessor at the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences of Aïn Sebaâ. In its legal and constitutional reading, democracy depends neither on the mere existence of institutions nor on the regularity of elections. It depends on their effectiveness, the competence of elected officials and the link between responsibility and accountability. The debate thus moves towards the essential: not only who will be elected, but how the mandate will be exercised.

Looking back at the history of Moroccan Parliamenton the progression of female representation and on the low share of legislative proposals put forward by parliamentarians – a share which she places at around 10% of legislative production –, Ms. Skalli puts into perspective an often overlooked dimension of the mandate: that of in-depth legislative and institutional work. She recalls in this regard that elected officials are not confined to women’s issues alone: ​​they represent the nation in all matters submitted to the Parliament. This responsibility is exercised in the commissions as well as in the legislative initiative, whether it concerns support for young people seeking employment, maternal and child health or medical termination of pregnancy in certain specific cases.

Parliament is therefore not just a place for speech. It is also a space for intervention on social policiesthere mental healththe cost of living, rights, freedoms and national causes, including Moroccan Sahara through parliamentary diplomacy. Touria Skalli, however, regrets that certain parliamentary reports, despite their findings and recommendations, do not always find a concrete translation, citing in particular the case of mental health.

Mostapha Mandouran active member of the Casablanca municipal council and the Hay Hassani district council under the PPS, starts from the field to question the real margins of local elected officials. The tension is clear: local councilors are directly exposed to the expectations of citizens, but their means of action are tightened. Mr. Mandour mentions the limits imposed on the opposition, the budgetary constraints of the districts, the transfer of several skills to local development companies and, more broadly, the decline in the role of elected councils.

In this context, the “advisor’s weapon” is often reduced to questioning, correspondence and advocacy. The observation shifts the debate: the crisis of confidence is not only due to elected officials themselves, but also to the institutional framework in which they operate. This reading is in line with the recommendations of the meeting, which call for reviewing the legal framework, strengthening control mechanisms and broadening the opposition’s margins of action.

Without integrity, without assumed responsibility and without transparency, representation loses its strength and the mandate loses its legitimacy. Moralization thus appears to be the basis of the political bond and one of the conditions for the return of confidence. The participants insisted on the effective application of the principle linking responsibility and accountability, on integrity as a criterion for selecting candidates, on the fight against conflicts of interest and on the need to put back on the table the bill relating to the prevention of illicit enrichment, presented as a lever for transparency and the fight against corruption.

Karima Ragoubaprofessor at the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences of Aïn Sebaâ, places this requirement in a broader reading of democratic functioning. For her, the effectiveness of institutions, transparency and the fight against forms of rent-seeking are inseparable from real democracy. But this democracy does not rely on elected officials alone: ​​it also presupposes an active citizen, capable of voting, following public action, engaging in community life and using participatory democracy mechanisms.

Karim Taj, member of the PPS political bureau, brings this requirement back to the direct relationship with citizens. An elected official can only convince in the long term if he is recognized for his credibility, his integrity, his seriousness and his presence on the ground. In this reading, moralization does not relate to an abstract register: it becomes a condition of electoral credibility as much as a source of democratic strengthening.

The meeting is therefore not limited to the institutional diagnosis alone. It also questions the quality of the link with citizens, at a time when distrust forces parties to review their way of speaking, listening and acting. In the conclusions, this requirement comes back clearly: rebuild a convincing political discourse, strengthen direct communication with citizens, reactivate proximity mechanisms and assume clear, realistic words, backed by the party’s record, its activist history and its program.

Mostapha Mandour recalls that the link with citizens cannot be limited to electoral meetings: the mandate supposes a continuous presence, listening to grievances and monitoring the realities of the territory. Karim Taj, for his part, insists on the contract of trust between elected officials and citizens, based on credibility, competence and the ability to propose concrete responses. Touria Skalli and Karima Ragouba further broaden this reading: citizen participation does not stop at voting. It presupposes the monitoring of public action, associative commitment and the use of participatory democracy mechanisms. This explains the approach taken by the PPS: “Making proximity not a campaign reflex, but a sustainable political method, capable of restoring meaning to the mandate and consistency to the representative link”.