Jordanians headed Tuesday to the voting centers to choose their representatives for the lower House. These are the first elections under King Abdullah II. The monarch has vowed "free and impartial" ballots and urged Jordanians to vote objectively.
Elections spokesman Faisal Shboul told Petra news agency that 765 candidates, including 54 women, were running for 104 seats in addition to six seats reserved for women. He added that 2,325,496 Jordanian citizens are eligible to vote for the Kingdom's 14th parliament.
The balloting rate reached 40 percent of the eligible voters until 14:30 am (1130GMT). Shboul stated that the highest ratio was in Karak and reached 68%, while in Amman the ratio was 26.5%.
The polls were due to close at 7:00 p.m. (1600 GMT), with counting to begin immediately and initial unofficial results expected in the late evening.
The government has declared Tuesday a holiday to encourage people to vote. (Albawaba.com)
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