Why do MPs Support Redistribution in Non-Democratic Regimes? An Analysis of Parliamentary Questions in Morocco.

Following the “Arab Spring” protests, Morocco has adopted a new Constitution that grants considerable powers to the Parliament and makes MPs important political actors by allowing them to take part in the policy-making process. This article seeks to investigate MPs support for redistributive policies by analyzing parliamentary questions (PQs) referring to social welfare policies. Existing research recognizes that PQs allow the identification of MPs preferences and opinions regarding policy issues. This study focuses on the case of the Moroccan House of representatives – where multi-party system is dominant since 1963 – to examine under which conditions legislators tend to be in favor of social welfare policies in a non-democratic regime. We have collected and coded a database of more than 40 000 oral and written parliamentary questions asked during the legislature 2012-2016. Findings suggest that constituency-based social questions are more likely to be asked as electoral competition increases. The results also show that non-constituency-based social questions are addressed by party leaders within the parliament.