Millions of Moroccans headed out to vote today, with worries about joblessness and extremism on their minds as they chose which party will lead their next government.
Adultery scandals and thwarted election-day attacks marked the unusually venomous campaign in this North African nation, which is allied with the US and seen as a model of stability and relative prosperity in the region.
Top contenders are a moderate Islamist party and an up-and-coming rival party seen as close to the royal palace. The palace pledged to loosen control over Moroccan politics after Arab Spring protests five years ago, but still retains control over major policy decisions.
"We are just hoping for the best" after the harsh campaign, said Fatima Ibn Abou, among dozens voting at the Mouad Ibn Jabal middle school in Casablanca where the prime minister is casting his ballot.
Since the last legislative elections in 2011, the Islamist Party of Justice and Development (PJD) has dominated parliament and led a government coalition comprised of several parties with differing ideologies.
The PJD faces tough competition from the Party of Authenticity and Modernity (PAM), widely regarded as close to the palace. It was founded in 2008 by Fouad Ali El Himma, childhood friend of King Mohammed VI and a current royal adviser.
To help illiterate voters, each party is represented by a symbol on the ballot as well as its name a lamp for the PJD, a tractor for the PAM, and other symbols for the other 26 parties.
Friday's election will determine the makeup of the upper chamber of parliament, comprised of 395 seats, 90 of which are reserved for women and youth. Nearly 7,000 candidates are running in 92 voting districts. Definitive results are expected Saturday.
Abdelilah Benkirane, the prime minister and head of the PJD, has clashed in recent public spats with Ilyas El-Omari, head of the PAM. This week, Benkirane slammed El-Omari for comments he made to The Associated Press suggesting that state-funded associations were among groups involved in radicalizing Moroccan youth.
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