A Saudi woman casts her ballot in a polling station in Jeddah on Saturday. For a full Kingdom-wide update, he advised Arab News to wait for Election Commission chief Judea Al-Qahtani’s press conference. Many women said they could not afford the high cost of running a visible campaign.
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Saturday’s municipal polls were open from 8am until 5pm local time (05:00-14:00 GMT). That was not the case, however, at all polling booths.
At first there was confusion among volunteers about whether it was permissible for a candidate to vote for herself. She has taken authorities to court over her exclusion.
Maha Akeel, the director of communications at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), was among the lucky ones.
After finally casting her ballot, she felt relief.
Despite women’s participation in the vote, however, there’s a widely held sentiment among many Saudis that women usually do not belong in public life.
According to Saudi election officials, 979 women candidates ran for office, compared to 5,938 men candidates.
At the same time, the changes are more cosmetic than seismic.
Meet Salma bint Hizab al-Oteibi.
Among the early voters was Amal Faisal. We believe in her, we believe in her ideas and I want her to start put a point, that I am supporting someone.
“I came to exercise my right to vote for a representative that can speak on my behalf in my neighbourhood or my council”.
She described her feeling as unbelievable.
At first, volunteers there were unclear about whether it was permissible for a candidate to vote.
“I have a voice and it matters. So maybe the woman can concentrate more than the man on those needs”.
Results from Northern Borders Province and the southwestern province of Asir, the only others to have been announced, had no successful women candidates.
Rothna Begum, a women’s rights researcher for the Middle East and North Africa region at Human Rights Watch, said the political first for women was a small step for greater female political participation in the Arabian peninsula kingdom.
Among those elderly women was Sameera Al-Dakheel, the 65-year-old mother of Al-Fassi, from the holy city of Makkah.
“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”.
Women also said voter registration had been hindered by bureaucratic obstacles, a lack of awareness of the process and its significance, and the fact that women could not drive themselves to sign up.
Some voters hoped that the Al Saud will eventually allow elections for the advisory parliament, the Shura Council.
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Fatin Bundagji, a spokeswoman for the women’s suffrage movement in Saudia Arabia, told Foreign Policy that much will depend on how women do in Saturday’s voting. It’s the third time in recent decades that Saudi men have been allowed to vote.
