Session to acquaint voters with electoral rules held in capital

Abu Dhabi: FNC nomination procedures and other electoral aspects were explained in detail to Emiratis eligible to exercise their franchise during an interactive orientation seminar held in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.

Tareq Hilal Lootah, undersecretary of the Ministry of State for FNC Affairs, member of the National Election Committee (NEC) and head of the Election Committee management, spoke to Gulf News during the event held at Al Raha Theatre in Abu Dhabi, about the differences between the 2011 and 2006 elections.

Lootah said: "In 2006 elections, the voters' number was 6,595 while in 2011 the number of voters is 129,274. The number of male voters amounts to 54 per cent and female voters constitute 46 per cent."

Women's participation

He added that the 2006 elections had voted in nine women to the FNC, or 22.5 per cent of the council, pointing out that the number of candidates had been 456.

This percentage was the highest in the Arab region, he pointed out.

Meanwhile, Saeed Al Ghafli, assistant undersecretary of the Ministry of State for FNC Affairs for the Federal Council and member of the NEC, said that the election process will be electronic in order to facilitate fool-proof counting of results.

He pointed out: "The voters are divided into two segments: those who are 30 years and above. This category constitutes 65 per cent. The other category is those who are from aged 21 to 30, constituting 35 per cent."

Preparation time

He told Gulf News that the number of participants in the elections this year is much higher and that candidates and voters had been given a period of about two months to prepare for the election campaigns.

Al Ghafli added that the voting process will begin at 8am and conclude at 7pm.

He added that there will be 40 seats for which elections are being held for the 2011 FNC.

"Abu Dhabi and Dubai will have four seats each, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah have been assigned three seats, Fujairah, Umm Al Quwain and Ajman will have two seats each," he added.

The basic criterion for any candidate for the FNC elections is being an Emirati aged 25 years or above with an established record of good conduct.

Electronic voting

The interactive orientation sessions that aim to demystify the Federal National Council elections marked a start on Sunday in Al Raha Theatre in Abu Dhabi with attendees being acquainted with the rules and regulations in place to ensure fair and transparent elections.

This year, the number of voters is 129,274, recording a 20-fold rise from the last elections, which were held in 2006 when only 6,595 voters elected 40 members of the FNC.

Tareq Hilal Lootah, undersecretary of the Ministry of State for FNC Affairs, member of the National Election Committee (NEC) and head of the Election Committee management, spoke to Gulf News about the differences between the 2011 and 2006 elections.

Saeed Al Ghafli, assistant undersecretary of the Ministry of State for FNC Affairs for the Federal Council and member of the NEC, said that the election process will be held electronically so as to facilitate easier counting of the results.

FNC elections: September 24, 2011

Statistics: 2011 election

• Total voters 129,274
• Female voters 46%
• Male voters 54%

2006 elections:

• Total seats in FNC 40
• Total voters 6,595 Total candidates 456
• Women elected to FNC 22.5% Men elected to FNC 77.5%

— Source: Federal National Council