Jordan’s Islamists were stunned when they lost control of one of the kingdom’s largest professional unions for the first time in more than 25 years. On May 4, the Islamists’ list, Injaz ("accomplishment" in Arabic), failed to win a majority of seats in the Engineers Association, while the centrist civil coalition Nu’mou ("Growth") clinched six of the 10 seats on the association's council, including the posts of president and deputy. The Islamists' loss is more than symbolic, perhaps pointing to a shift in Jordanian voters' mindset.
For decades, Islamist candidates have competed against a leftist coalition of nationalists, Baathists and members of the Palestinian Fatah movement for control of major professional unions in Jordan. Since the mid-1990s, the Islamists, associated with the Muslim Brotherhood, had controlled the Engineers Association’s council and most of its branches.
