Saudi voters elected women candidates for first time in Municipal council polls

Saudi was the last country to give its women the right to vote. King Abdullah promised in 2011 to extend to women the right to vote and stand as candidates in municipal elections-the local councils are the only popularly elected bodies in Saudi Arabia’s monarchy-and his successor, King Salman, made good on the pledge.

ÒEven if it was only one woman, weÕre really proud of that.

The five women hail from vastly different parts of the country, ranging from Saudi Arabia’s second largest and most cosmopolitan city to a small village near Islam’s holiest sites.

Saudi women had to vote at separate polling centers from men, and female candidates were not allowed to speak directly with male voters, either needing to address them through a partition using a projector and microphone, or by being represented by male surrogate campaigners.

Sabq.org, a news website affiliated with Saudi Interior Ministry, was first to report that the 17 had successfully been elected across the kingdom.

“One woman told me that being able to vote was the equivalent of being given a cashmere sweater when she needs a place to live”.

In Qassim, traditionally the most conservative part of the country, two women were elected but their names were not immediately released. “We have accumulated quite a number of voters, with about 600,000 voters this time, and about 130,000 among them are female, taking up about 24 per cent of the overall registered voters”.

The kingdom’s first municipal ballot in 2005 was for men only.

Before the late King Abdullah died, he promised that there would be more involvement for women in politics.

The commission said 2,100 council seats were at stake, with almost 1,000 women and over 5,900 men as candidates.

“The councils have a four-year mandate as Saudi Arabia has no elected parliament, ” it said.

Alya’a Mkeamen Al-Rowali, Huda Abdulrahman Al-Harbi and Jawaher Othman Al-Jerasi won three seats in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. The councils do not have legislative powers, but advise authorities and help oversee local budgets. Both understand that Saudi women deserve to hold leadership positions and have a say in the country’s affairs.

She said that she knew how to deal with her male counterparts in a logical way, adding that she never gets into clashes with them. “It was a thrilling experience”.