This paper explores how the local level – as a space – is contested, and how processes of struggle between different forces that interact and intersect at the local level affect the transformation of the state from below. Based on the assumption that state power does not simply emerge fully formed due to its statist formation, the paper aims to overcome the conventionally assumed dichotomy between state and society. An in-depth analysis of practices of various agents and agencies in Jordan illustrates the dynamics of state-society relations. By elaborating on how their strategies and practices overlap, reinforce or cancel each other out, the paper elaborates on how the context of local governance is (re)constructed and (re)shaped.