'Smooth' voting under way

AMMAN — Nearly 803,000 Jordanians cast their ballots in the parliamentary elections as of 3pm Tuesday, the Independent Election Commission (IEC) said.

Interior Minister Tawfiq Halalmeh and Public Security Department (PSD) Director Maj. Gen. Hussein Hawatmeh visited several polling stations to check on the election process and police forces stationed at polling stations and other vital areas, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Media Affairs Ali Al Ayed said during a press conference at the IEC that the election procedure is going “smoothly” without any major incidents despite the tough health condition.

“We have a tough health condition that is resembled in the rapid spread of COVID-19 that has entered every home in Jordan. It is our responsibility to adhere to health precautions to protect our loved ones and the nation,” Ayed told reporters.

Around 4.6 million citizens are eligible to vote to elect 130 MPs, including nine seats for Christians, three for the Circassians and the Chechens, and 15 seats that are dedicated to women via a quota system that was introduced in 2003.   

There is a total of 1,824 polling stations, housing 8,080 ballot boxes, according to the Independent Election Commission (IEC), which supervises the elections. 

The minister also said that today “Jordanian men and women went to the polls to elect a parliament that would determine their future”.

“Jordanians deserve the best and it is them who will make their own choices that benefit them and the country,” Ayed added.

The government spokesperson also praised the IEC for its “professional handling of the elections”.

The government official also praised the PSD for their important role in “enforcing law and order at the polling booths to ensure a smooth and safe election process”.

The PSD announced on Monday that it had dispatched some 53,000 police officers on Monday in different locations in the Kingdom to safeguard citizens during the elections.

Local media outlets reported on Monday that the PSD plans to deploy drones for aerial surveillance to make sure that there would be no violations related to huge gatherings during the election period. 

IEC Spokesperson Jihad Momani had told The Jordan Times that the final count of the lists that were registered in preparation for the upcoming elections stands at 294.

The total number of registered candidates stand at 1,674, including 360 women, according to Momani. 

The polling stations will receive voters until 7pm, according to Momani, adding that voting “could be extended for an additional two hours if needed”.

Some 1,350 reporters representing 135 local and international media outlets will cover the elections, Momani added.

Also speaking during the press conference, Minister of Political and Parliamentary Affairs Musa Maaytah described the current elections as an important opportunity for the political parties to take an active role in voting in these “transparent and fair elections”.

“We depend on the citizens’ positive attitudes to take part in this democratic process by casting their ballots and determining their own future,” Maaytah stressed.

Meanwhile, the IEC announced the formation of three specialised committees that are distributed in Amman, Irbid and Karak, to compile and check the preliminary results of the elections. The committees, headed by retired judges, include public figures.   

Elections to the 19th Parliament are being held following a Royal decree in July, directing the concerned authorities to hold parliamentary elections in accordance with the provisions of law. The Kingdom is divided into 23 constituencies. 

The IEC also announced a string of procedures to ensure the success of the election process while at the same time ensuring the safety and security of the citizens amid the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases.

The measures include testing all the officials and other individuals who will be stationed at the polling centres for COVID-19 ahead of the elections to ensure that no one is tested positive for the coronavirus, as well as distributing pens to each voter for health and safety purposes.