ELECTION SUPPORT ACTIVITIES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 003135

SIPDIS

SECSTATE FOR DAS LIZ CHENEY

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/28/2010
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM SCUL OEXC OIIP JO
SUBJECT: ELECTION SUPPORT ACTIVITIES

Classified By: Haynes Mahoney, PA


1. (C) Summary. In the three remaining weeks before the June
17 Parliamentary elections the Mission is coordinating with
MEPI-funded NGOs, including the National Democratic Institute
(NDI) and the International Republican Institute (IRI) to
strengthen the electoral process and traditions, to encourage
participation by women and youth, and to ensure that the
elections are as transparent and fair as possible. We are
sensitive to that fine line between the need to inform the
GOJ of USG-funded activities while encouraging the Jordanian
officials to allow maximum leeway for non-governmental
activity aimed at strengthening the elections' credibility.
In his meetings with the Ambassador and with the PAO and
USAID Director Planning Minister Bassem Awadullah has been
generally supportive of our election programming, expressing
the caveat that it should be low profile, lest --as he told
the PAO and USAID Director-- Islamists with an anti-U.S.
agenda claim that the USG is trying to skew the election
results. So far, both the Mission's Public Affairs Section
and the U.S. NGOs have been able to conduct a number of
activities such as advising female candidates, training
journalists on election coverage, and providing fora in which
candidates can debate and convey their message to the
electorate. These activities have all been conducted under
the auspices of Jordanian civic organizations. End summary.

Supporting Women Candidates


2. (U) Both the Mission and the NGOs have supported
Jordanian women who are running for the six women's quota
seats or hoping to beat male candidates outright. Public
Affairs arranged the program of U.S. campaign manager Daryl
Glenny who counseled 18 out of the 36 registered female
candidates during her IIP-sponsored May 18-27 visit. In
individual sessions arranged by the Jordanian National
Women's Forum, Ms. Glenny advised the candidates --who
represented the full political spectrum-- on shaping their
messages and maximizing their resources in the final stages
before election day. PA has also given the National Women's
Forum a grant to fund a phone bank, enabling any female
candidate who wishes to canvass her constituents by phone.


3. (C) Simultaneously NDI in cooperation with the Women's
Forum, a Jordanian NGO, raised funds from the Canadian
Embassy and some local corporations to produce TV spots and
SMS mobile phone text messages urging voters to elect women.
There was some initial misunderstandings among some Jordanian
NGO leaders who thought that NDI was funding individual
candidates, but their representatives told the Mission that
they have since clarified that the TV spots and SMS messages
are strictly generic. NDI hopes that two Jordanian TV
stations and possibly one Arab satellite broadcaster will air
the messages. They likewise plan to develop a manual for
women candidates in future elections and to support media
training by the Women's Media Center, a Jordanian NGO. NDI
is also contacting international media and encouraging them
to focus on the high level of activity by female candidates
in this conservative, male-oriented society.

Engaging the Electorate


4. (C) To focus Jordanian journalists on the "so-what" aspect
of their reporting about the elections, PA is funding an
ongoing three-day workshop featuring the IIP-sponsored
American journalism professor Tom Warhover and an Egyptian
counterpart. The training, which is being conducted by an
NGO --the Jordanian Committee for the Defense of the Freedom
of Journalists-- will focus on reporting skills plus the
legal and political environment and will include hands-on
training in the form of interviews and coverage of a debate
between actual candidates. NDI and IRI both plan on "town
meetings" and other fora enabling candidates to debate and
answer the electorate's questions. Working with the local
branch of Transparency International, NDI is organizing a
local NGO which will assess the election environment and
possibly lay the groundwork for a future monitoring
organization. IRI also plans on assessing voter priorities
and motivations through an exit poll conducted by a local
Jordanian organization.


5. (U) Election apathy has been a particular problem among
Jordanian youth. Using MEPI funds, the IRI therefore plans
to hold three "mock parliaments," for university-age students
in different regions under the auspices of the Princess Basma
Youth Resources Center --an "NGO" associated with the Royal
Court. Similarly, NDI plans to hold a televised "town hall
meeting" between candidates and youth, which they hope will
be broadcast on JTV.

Modest but Hopeful Expectations


6. (C) Jordanians expect turnout to be modest for the
elections, an expectation confirmed by casual conversations.
Among the elite business community, students and workers the
question is: "What can the Parliament do for me?" Many doubt
that the government will allow the truly qualified opposition
politicians to run or be elected, and there are many
complaints about the skewed delineation of election districts
to disadvantage the urban and Palestinian voters. The most
hopeful aspect, in many Jordanians' eyes, are the six women's
quota seats, for which there is a high level of competition
and public interest.

(C) Nevertheless, assuming the elections are perceived to be
relatively transparent and fair compared to the last
elections of 1997, where stuffed ballots and other
irregularities were common, they could be a positive step
towards representative government. Our Mission activities
and those by the MEPI-supported NGOs aim at providing
candidates, especially women, with campaigning skills and at
awakening an interest among the youth. We hope our activities
will pave the way for increased participation in future
elections. Also, the holding of relatively free and fair
elections soon after the Iraq war and just prior to the June
21-23 World Economic Forum will send an important message
about Jordanian stability and commitment to democratic
progress.
GNEHM