The results, announced by Interior Minister Eid Fayez at a press conference, also showed that women’s representation rose to a record of seven, six of them winning under a quota system.

Meanwhile, there were news reports that a new government was being formed to succeed that of Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit.

Officials contacted by The Jordan Times said they have no information on the issue.

Also Wednesday, a Royal Decree was issued on Wednesday reappointing Zeid Rifai as president of the Senate, as of November 17, 2007.

Fayez said earlier that the elections were held in a smooth and transparent manner, noting that security agents arrested a number of men for alleged vote-buying, a violation that he insisted was limited.

The number of Islamist deputies in the 15th Parliament will be the lowest representation for the Islamist movement since parliamentary life was revived nearly two decades ago.

The IAF was unable to win seats in Zarqa and Irbid, its traditional strongholds, and only two of its eight nominees for Amman seats made it to the House.

In a press conference held on Wednesday, the IAF, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, said the government was leading a smear campaign to minimise chances of its candidates by “facilitating” vote-buying by influential businessmen.

The IAF said that most vote-rigging took place during the final hours yesterday when polling stations were opened for extra hours to accommodate an influx of voters.

“Most vote-rigging took place in the final hours for voting and ballot counting by adding thousands of votes in ballot boxes in favour of certain candidates and by preventing candidates and their representatives from overseeing ballot counting,” he said.

The movement claimed that pressure is being exerted on local media to publish “the official account” and cover up election crimes.

The IAF also took the opportunity to renew its attack against the one-man, one-vote formula. It said this electoral system “enhances frustration and diminishes hope of reform”, among the public, according to a statement released during the press conference.

Moreover, none of the six candidates fielded by the National Coalition for Political Parties managed to make it into the next Parliament.

Meanwhile, activists from the Jordanian Civil Alliance, an umbrella of NGOs, said despite some perceived setbacks in the voting process, the elections were held in a fair and free manner.

They were speaking at a press conference to announce the findings of their initial evaluation report, based on information gathered by approximately 450 observers who interviewed more than 15,000 voters on election day.

The alliance included Al Urdun Al Jadeed Research Centre (UJRC) and 45 NGOs from different parts of the Kingdom who took the initiative of observing the elections themselves, said UJRC Director Hani Hourani.

The government decided that all NGOs willing to observe the elections must operate under the umbrella of the National Centre for Human Rights. Therefore, the alliance decided to conduct an independent mission.

Hourani said they did not apply for badges issued by election authorities to secure entry into polling centres; however, he pointed out many of their volunteers were able to enter the facilities and accomplish their mission.

The report cited some delays in opening voting centres, computer network malfunctions and the absence of some voter names in databases.

Final figures released today revealed that voter turnout reached 54 per cent at the national level, with the highest rate recorded in the rural town of Tafileh (82 per cent) and the lowest in the capital (35 per cent).

The government mobilised 40,000 police officers and soldiers to maintain security in 45 districts across the Kingdom.

Apart from two isolated outbreaks of violence reported in Karak after initial results were announced late Tuesday, no other security-related incidents were reported.

The first incident, according to eyewitnesses, occurred in Mazar, 30km from Karak, when a group of protesters headed to the Mazar and Muta Municipality offices and allegedly committed an arson attack targeting a storage room in the building. The police intervened and brought the situation under control, they told The Jordan Times.

The second incident was in the Smakieh village, 30km north of Karak. Tens of citizens gathered in a protest against the polling results, before calm was restored following police intervention, the eyewitnesses added.

Hani Hazaimeh and Khalid Neimat contributed to this report