You are here

Muwaqqar by-elections smoothest ever — IEC

By JT - Oct 21,2018 - Last updated at Oct 21,2018

AMMAN — More than half of eligible voters cast their ballots in the by-elections of municipal and governorate councils in the Muwaqqar District on Saturday, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The Independent Election Commission (IEC) decided to re-hold the municipal and governorate council elections in Muwaqqar after it cancelled the 2017 polls in the area, due to violations committed in the Central Badia District.

IEC spokesperson Jihad Momani said the elections were run to elect the Muwaqqar Municipality Council, and 13 local councils in constituencies 28 and 29, affiliated with the Capital Governorate Council, pointing out that the turnover reached 51.53 per cent by 6:00pm.

He pointed out that there was no actual violation that disrupted or blocked the voting process, according to Petra.

He said that the process of vote counting was to be conducted in the same ballot rooms and each ballot box would be counted separately, adding that the results of each ballot box would be announced in a statement posted on the door of the ballot room and the gates of the polling.

Momani stressed that these elections are “considered one of the easiest and smoothest elections that ever took place in the Kingdom”, adding that “the area’s people are determined to make these elections succeed and to overcome what transpired in the previous 2017 elections”.

Meanwhile, Momani also announced the closing of all ballot centres in Muwaqqar at 7:00pm and the start of the votes counting process in some centres, Petra reported.

In a related development, the National Centre for Human Rights (NCHR) said that the voting process in Muwaqqar saw minor violations that did not constitute a widespread practice affecting the outcome of the by-elections.

The NCHR also added that the voting process saw the presence of strict security procedures to ensure the integrity of the voting process and to avoid what transpired in the previous elections.

A total of 20,652 citizens, including 8,815 males and 11,837 females were eligible to vote, while the number of candidates stood at 90 and ballot boxes at 43, Petra said.

up
53 users have voted.


Newsletter

Get top stories and blog posts emailed to you each day.

PDF