Jordan's electoral commission sets parliamentary elections for Jan. 23

AMMAN, Jordan – Jordan's electoral commission has scheduled the country's parliamentary elections for Jan. 23.

The polls are part of reforms launched by King Abdullah II to stave off an Arab Spring revolt in Jordan. Uprisings elsewhere have so far toppled four long-time Arab leaders.

The Independent Electoral Commission announced the date of the polls on Tuesday. It is made up of renowned judges and was set up last year to manage and supervise the elections — a task previously in the hands of the government.

Jordan's powerful Muslim Brotherhood has said it will boycott the polls in protest against an election law it sees as biased in favor of pro-government loyalists.

The government insists it has adopted a globally recognized election system and that the Islamists' alternative would inflate their own representation.