Record 67% turnout in historic polls
CITIZENS IN LONG QUEUES BRAVE SUN TO CAST BALLOT IN PARLIAMENTARY, MUNICIPAL POLLS
Participation is well above the 53% witnessed during the Kingdom’s last elections in 2014 |
Polls closed in Bahrain yesterday after historic parliamentary and municipal elections with a record number of candidates and the highest number of women running for office.
The unprecedented number of young people participating in the polls also stands out, Justice Minister and head of the elections Shaikh Khalid Bin Ali Al Khalifa said.
Bahrain’s state news agency (BNA) said 54 polling stations were open for 12 hours before voting closed at 8pm (1700 GMT). Shaikh Khalid said voter turnout was 67 per cent, more than in 2014 when opposition groups boycotted the elections. He did not say when the results would be announced.
Earlier, long queues of people braved the sun to cast their ballots.
According to official figures, 365,467 eligible voters are listed to cast their ballots in the fifth quadrennial parliamentary and municipal elections since 2002, the year of the promulgation of the constitution that allowed women to vote and run in national polls.
At 8.30am, the general polling station at the Seef Mall on the outskirts of the capital Manama was filled with voters.
Long queues of men and women could be seen winding their way to the voting area where polling workers welcomed them, directed them to counters where their names were verified before they were handed the sheets with the names and pictures of the candidates. Voters walked to a secluded area where they ticked the name of their favourite candidate, folded the paper and placed it in the designated box.
Polling workers could be seen assisting physically handicapped voters by pushing their wheelchairs to the box and lowering it to them so that they could themselves cast their ballots.
“It was a really smooth process and besides participating in a fine exercise of democracy, I was pleased to see the genuine benevolent character of Bahrainis in assisting one another,” Esmail Khalid, a retired Bahraini, told Gulf News.
Khalid came with his wife and daughter who shared his enthusiasm about actively participating in the democratic process. “The general polling stations are a blessing when you cannot stand in long queues for a long time,” he said.
Hassan Madani, the Deputy Governor of the Capital, said he was pleased to come in the morning and take part in the election process. “Elections are a great opportunity that reflects our will and commitment to democracy and to electing our representatives,” he said.
Visits to other polling stations in Muharraq, the Northern Governorate and the Southern Governorate showed the same spirit as voters felt empowered to select the people who will represent them in the next parliament and municipal councils.
Shaikh Khalid early yesterday warned voters not to heed mobile messages that sought to mislead voters into believing their names had been deleted and could not, therefore, cast their ballots, urging them to avoid going to polling stations.