Voting in the National Assembly (parliament) elections began Thursday in Kuwait. According to the national agency of the emirate KUNA, the polls opened at 08:00 a.m. local time.
The country's authorities expect the elections to take place with a high turnout. Almost 800,000 voters are registered on the voter list. They are tasked with choosing 50 members of parliament from 305 hopefuls in a one-vote per individual elections.
Polling stations are expected to close at 8:00 p.m. local time, after which the vote count will begin.
In Kuwait, citizens over the age of 21 have the right to vote. Last year, the cabinet approved a draft decree to the election law that provides for voting by national ID card. One of the parliamentary candidates, lawyer Adel al-Yahya, tried last week to challenge it in court and get the election date postponed, but the court rejected his complaint. On Wednesday, the emirate's interior ministry issued a directive that allows voters to cast their vote without identification by presenting either a temporary document or a certificate that it has been lost.
On June 22, Crown Prince Mashaal Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah of Kuwait announced the dissolution of the country's parliament due to the dissatisfaction of the citizens with the legislative body. According to the prince, the political scene in Kuwait has been one of constant disagreements and attempts to "satisfy personal interests at the expense of the nation," negatively affecting both the country's development prospects and the relationship between the executive and legislative branches.
The National Assembly is a unicameral parliament that consists of 50 deputies elected for four years in a direct general election. The last elections were held on December 5, 2020.
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Based on materials from TASS