Bahrain: Voting concludes in parliamentary and municipal elections
Citizens yesterday turned out in huge numbers at polling stations all over Bahrain to elect their Parliamentary and Municipal council representatives in constituencies where the first round of voting failed to produce a result.
The chairman and judges of the High Elections Committee congratulated His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and Deputy King HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa for the remarkable success achieved in both rounds of the election.
The high turnout of voters, officials said, reflects the confidence of Bahraini citizens in the electoral process and strong resolve to participate actively in the reform project through the constitutional institutions.
The committee said the high voter turnout builds on landmark achievements in light of royal care, noting women and youth’s participation in the polls.
Yesterday, polling booths all over Bahrain closed their doors at 8 pm to count the votes and declare winners.
Results started emerging soon after, with counting stations releasing names of leading candidates.
Up for grabs yesterday were 34 parliament seats and 23 municipal council seats.
At the time of closing, candidates including Muhammad alMaarafi, Abdul Hakim Al-Shinno, Abdullah Al-Dhaen, Badr Al-Tamimi, Ahmed Al-Salloum, Muhammad Al-Husseini, Abbas Al-Omani, Maryam Al Dhaen, Jamil Dad Mulla Hassan, Muhammad Al-Alewi, Maryam Al-Saegh, Hamad Al-Dawi, Mahmoud Fardan, Mohsen Al-Asboul, Hassan Bukhamas, Ali Saqr Al-Dossary, Iman Showaiter, Muhammad Al-Rifai, Ali Saqr Al-Dossary and Jalal Mahfouz were leading in their respective constituencies.
Bahrain citizens abroad cast their ballots on Tuesday at embassies, consulates and diplomatic missions.
In round one, held last week, 73.18% of the 344,713 eligible voters exercised their voting rights.
However, this resulted in electing only six candidates to parliament and seven to the municipal councils.
