Lina Al-Abdulrazzak

A Jordanian political trailblazer who transformed women's political participation through legislative reforms and grassroots activism

Lina Al-Abdulrazzak is a pioneering Jordanian politician and human rights advocate whose legislative work has revolutionized women's political representation in the Middle East. Born in 1975 in Amman, she became the youngest woman ever elected to Jordan's Parliament in 2003 at age 28, breaking multiple societal norms. Her early career as a lawyer specializing in family law exposed her to systemic gender inequalities, motivating her to enter politics.

In 2006, she introduced Jordan's landmark Family Protection Law, which criminalized domestic violence and introduced mandatory spousal support. This legislation was the first of its kind in the Arab world to address marital rape and establish shelters for abused women. Al-Abdulrazzak's cross-party negotiations involved over 100 hours of parliamentary debates, demonstrating her ability to bridge ideological divides.

Her grassroots initiative "Women's Political Academy" has trained over 10,000 women in campaign strategies and public speaking since 2010. The program's graduates now hold 20% of Jordan's municipal council seats, a dramatic increase from 3% in 2000. Al-Abdulrazzak's 2018 book "Building Democracy One Woman at a Time" details her strategies for empowering marginalized communities.

Her innovative use of social media during the 2020 parliamentary elections reached 2 million voters through YouTube webinars and WhatsApp campaigns. This digital strategy helped elect 15 women representatives, the highest number in Jordan's history. Al-Abdulrazzak's work has inspired similar movements in Lebanon and Palestine, where her training manuals are used to build women's leadership capacity.