ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to move beyond the general images of the Hashemite Kingdom to examine more closely its actual record in terms of governance, reform and change. It examines the political and economic liberalization process in Jordan. The chapter provides an overview of the nature of the Jordanian political system and its institutions of governance. It analyses the resurgence of identity politics within Jordan, and its implications for governance, reform and stability. The chapter discusses the impact of the 2011 'Arab Spring' on politics and governance in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The roles and responsibilities of the various governing institutions were established in the 1952 Jordanian Constitution, but in Jordanian politics, executive power rests mainly in the hands of the monarch. Jordan's political liberalization and reform process has surged both forward and backward since its beginnings in 1989.
