This article surveys the adoption and implementation of gender quota provisions in the three Moroccan parliamentary elections, 2002, 2007 and 2011, following the first adoption of gender quotas. Despite being effective in bringing a substantial number of women into the parliament, the question should be asked, can gender quotas, once introduced, lead to more sustainable political representation for women? By introducing the concept of sustainable representation, defined as a durable, substantial political representation of women, this article points to the importance of studying how gender quotas may or may not alter some of the barriers, which prevents women's equal participation and representation. This study of the nomination and election of women through three subsequent elections in Morocco since the adoption of gender quotas, traces the evolution of the reserved seat system from a controversial and fragile system set by an 'honorary agreement' to an expanded and finally legalized system. The analysis suggests that the political uprising in the neighboring countries during 2010-11 created a political transitional atmosphere for the reform of the Moroccan constitution, and provided an opportunity for institutionalizing the principle of gender equality in the 2011 constitution. In exploring the link between the reserved seat system and having women elected in the general district seats in Moroccan elections, the article scrutinizes the widespread supposition in the quota literature that quotas in the form of reserved seats tend to block the nomination of women to constituency seats, thus constituting a kind of glass ceiling. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
