AMMAN, 18 June 2003 — Jordanians voted yesterday in the first parliamentary elections since King Abdallah came to power five years ago, which the king hopes will bolster his country’s democratic credentials as a close US ally.

Opposition Islamists, who boycotted the last elections, were expected to claim nearly a quarter of the seats. Abdallah had appealed for a high turnout among the country’s 2.3 million eligible voters, and said the elections for the 110-seat lower house were a milestone toward the goal of modernizing his tribal kingdom.

Interior Minister Qaftan Majali said polling stations across the country closed at 7 p.m. (1600 GMT) and that final results will be announced today. He did not provide a final turnout figure, but his aides said it slightly exceeded 50 percent of Jordan’s 2.3 million registered electorate.

“I have come to vote for a deputy who would put the interest of the country first and who would feel what the country wants and does it,” said Fakhri Al-Azi, a retired officer outside a polling station in a school in the Qweismeh district of Amman.

Some voters echoed skepticism that Parliament could tackle real popular grievances.

“I am hesitant to vote... it won’t make a difference either way,” Ahmad Salameh, a 38-year-old school teacher, said.

Voting for the 765 candidates, including 54 women, began slowly on a quiet public holiday.

“I’m not too keen to vote because lawmakers have done little for us, but I had to come because my candidate is a family member,” said housewife Rabaa Najar, 34, after she voted with six sisters and her mother. She had arrived at an Amman polling station in a bus provided by a candidate, a common practice in Jordan.

The elections are the first under King Abdallah.

Parliament has not met since Abdallah dissolved it two years after ascending the throne in 1999. He repeatedly postponed elections as popular sympathies were gripped by Israeli-Palestinian violence on the neighboring West Bank.

Jordan’s Parliament can block bills and force a prime minister and Cabinet to resign.