Kuwait holds parliamentary election under shadow of coronavirus

Gulf Today Report

Kuwaitis went to the polls on Saturday in a parliamentary election overshadowed by COVID-19, with facilities laid on for citizens infected with the disease to vote at special polling stations.

More than 567,000 Kuwaiti voters were eligible to choose among the 326 candidates, who include 29 women.
Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al Khaled Al Sabah (R) arrives to cast his votes at a polling station. AFP

Campaigning, which took place mostly on social media and local TV channels due to COVID-19 restrictions, has focused on the economy, corruption.

Polls opened from 8am to 8pm and saw Kuwaitis wearing disposable gloves drop their ballots into clear ballot boxes.
A woman casts her vote at a polling station in Jahra City. Reuters

The emirate has enforced some of the strictest regulations in the Gulf to combat the spread of the virus, imposing a months-long lockdown earlier this year.

Voters have their temperature checked before entering a polling station. AFP

While some of those curbs have been eased, over-the-top campaign events that traditionally draw thousands for lavish banquets were absent from this year's election, while masks remain mandatory and temperature checks are routine when venturing outdoors.

Infected people or those under mandatory quarantine are usually confined to home, with electronic wristbands monitoring their movements.

But in an effort to respect their right to vote, authorities designated five polling stations — one in each electoral district — for them to cast their ballots, among the 102 across the country.

A woman casts her vote at a polling station in Jahra City. Reuters

And on Saturday authorities set up security barriers around the polling stations to prevent gatherings, with designated lanes for entry and exit.

Mask-clad voters, who were also forced to wear gloves, were subject to temperature checks before entering the facilities where election officials stood behind glass barriers.

Women wait to cast their votes at a polling station. AFP

The polls, which opened at 8:00am, are the first since the new emir, Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah, took office in September following the death of his half-brother, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, at the age of 91.