With Jordan's seventeenth parliamentary elections just around the corner, the streets of the Kingdom have been awash with campaign posters. But in true political fashion, pre-poll drama has ensued, sabotaging the chances of candidates on all sides.
While politicians and their teams have spent months devising campaign strategies to outwit their opponents, no party foresaw the most unpredictable and potentially formidable entrant of the 2013 election race: the weather.
When campaign posters went up on buildings, street signs and lampposts across the country, candidates breathed a sigh of relief that phase one of the grueling election process was over: their message was out there ready for the people to decide. But entire campaigns were blown away in just a matter of hours when storms hit Jordan on Sunday night.
With hail stones and rain pouring down on the Kingdom, election posters were torn from the walls and sent flying through the streets.
In a desperate attempt to get their campaign plans back on track, political teams braved the winds today to recover and replace the fallen signs.
But with the storms raging on, their efforts may have been in vain.
And, while politicians have been trying to get their campaigns back up-and-running, the Greater Amman Municipality has been on its own mission to remove unsecured electoral posters.
With fears that the faces on the fallen signs won't get into parliament, politicians across the country are in crisis mode.
But the bad weather does seem to be on the side of at least one political group: Jordan's Muslim Brotherhood, who are boycotting the January polls, are undoubtedly enjoying the havoc the weather is wreaking on their political opponents.
With the election set for January 23, those in the running can only hope that, unlike the weather, their campaigns won't be a washout.
Does the weather really affect the vote? Would you change your mind based on a picture? Share you thoughts below.
