Saudi Women Vote—and Win Elections—for the First Time
December 14, 2015
Women in Saudi Arabia were elected to office for the first time in landmark municipal elections held on December 12. It was also the first time that Saudi women were allowed to vote and to run for office. Although women won only a fraction of the total number of local council seats—about a dozen of the 2,106 available—it was seen as a turning point in this ultra-conservative monarchy in which women are still deprived of many basic rights, including driving or traveling abroad without a male relative’s permission. Saudi Arabia had been the only other country besides Vatican City that denied women the right to vote where men had the right.
Women made up a small portion of the electorate in the elections. Only 130,000 women registered to vote, compared with 1.36 million men. While overall turnout was a little less than 50 percent, the turnout of women was nearly 80 percent in some places. Nevertheless, local councils have limited powers. They oversee urban development projects in their districts, but have no final say on how the public money is spent. A third of 3,159 municipal council seats nationwide are appointed, rather than elected.
The national government of Saudi Arabia is a monarchy under the Al Saud ruling family. In 2005, municipal elections were held throughout Saudi Arabia for the first time. Only men were allowed to vote in them. They were the country’s first political elections of any kind since 1963. In 2011, King Abdullah announced that women would be allowed to vote and run for office in the 2015 elections.
Many people hoped the vote would pave the way for more progress on women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. Prince Fahad bin Sultan, the governor of Tabuk province where two women won seats, called the women candidates’ victories a “major shift” and said he hoped they would encourage more women to participate in future elections.
Additional World Book articles:
- Woman suffrage
- Women’s movement
- Saudi Arabia (2011) – A Back in Time article
- Saudi Arabia (2013) – A Back in Time article
- Saudi Women Granted Vote (2011) – A Behind the Headlines article
- Saudi Women to be Lashed for Driving (2011) – A Behind the Headlines article
