Prince Mansour said the Kingdom and its government agencies have satisfied the yearnings of the people "for a free, fair and credible election."
“While the last municipal council elections were conducted with the assistance of experts from the United States, Europe and some Arab countries in addition to the United Nations, the preparations for the current elections were made by Saudi experts assisted by 16,000 Saudi workers in all the provinces,” the prince said.
He also thanked Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah for permitting women to participate in the next municipal elections, and hoped that the move would lead to a qualitative shift in municipal activities.
The prince welcomed suggestions from the public and media to improve the role of the municipal councils in serving the people, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
He said that he was impressed by the voting procedures, which he described as transparent. He was speaking to reporters in Riyadh after inspecting the progress of voting in the capital.
Abdul Rahman Al-Dahmash, chief of the election commission, said: "We started the election and finished it successfully and all parties are happy with it." He commended security agencies for maintaining peace and order everywhere. He said that the indicators suggest "a considerable voter turnout, joyful atmosphere and peaceful environment all over the country."
Saudis in the Eastern Province voted with great enthusiasm, while the voter turnout at many posh residential districts in Jeddah was lukewarm. Voting in the Asir region was brisk, with the voters arriving early to cast their ballots.
"It was a landmark municipal election in Riyadh," said another election commission official after daylong polling concluded at 5 p.m. But, voter turnout in other regions and places like Tabuk, Buraidah and Qatif was discouraging. "Fewer people came out to vote in Tabuk," said H. Saleh Al-Qabli, a candidate running for the municipal councilor seat in Tabuk region.
He said voting picked up just two hours before the end.
Ali Bin Suleiman Al-Dubaikhi, a contestant from Buraidah said "there were fewer voters and turnout was lowest among the youth." He, however, expressed satisfaction over the arrangements made at the polling stations by the election commission.
"Similar trends were noticed in Jeddah also," said Abdulaziz bin Nasser Alsorayai, a candidate in the fray from one of the municipal constituencies in Jeddah. It was more or less the same scenario in Makkah, Madinah, Taif and the northern regions of Al-Qassim, Hail, Al-Jouf and the Northern Frontier regions, said an independent observer.
In Riyadh, Mayor Prince Abdulaziz bin Mohammed bin Ayyaf visited some polling stations during the day and expressed satisfaction over the preparations and said voting was taking place in an "orderly manner."
In Najran, more than 25,000 voters thronged the 18 polling centers to cast their votes, while 25 polling stations in Tabuk region witnessed a few thousand voters.
“I’m not concerned with who won or who lost, rather I am more concerned about my vote and encouraging people to vote," said Khaled Al-Sufiyan, an elderly voter in Riyadh. Al-Sufiyan said that he was confident that these municipal elections would lead to voting for other offices.
"We’re taking one step further with this election," said a handicapped voter at a polling booth at Prince Salman Social Center in Riyadh. He said that the poll showed the maturity of voters who were not swayed by money, extremist agendas or tribal affiliations. They ignored candidates who made unrealistic promises or had no platform, even if they poured a lot of money into the campaigning, he added.
In Dammam, a steady stream of voters, young and old, kept poll officials busy at many centers. Many arrived in their own cars and some were brought in from far-off districts in special coaches arranged by the contestants.
The exact percentage of voter turnout was not available at the time of going to press but a number of independent observers spread across the Eastern Province cities of Dammam, Alkhobar, Dhahran, Jubail and Ras Tanura told Arab News that turnout was less than moderate. Polling was quite dull in the morning but it picked up after Asr prayers. Thursday being the weekend, there was not much activity during the day.
Arab News visited a polling center in Dammam’s Al-Mazrouia district where the atmosphere was festive. The polling was taking place in a school building. Supporters of candidates guided the voters. They were like ushers at a wedding ceremony. A number of policemen guarded the center and kept order.
Teacher Moqhtar Al-Khateeb, who turned up at 4 p.m. to cast his vote, said he was reluctant to take part in this particular electoral exercise. “I voted the last time in 2005, and it did not lead to what we were expecting. Our elected representative could not do anything for us. There was a lot of enthusiasm then.”
Al-Khateeb’s youthful relative Waleed Nawab felt that those who voted the last time were particularly disillusioned. “I did not vote in the last elections because I was not qualified to vote. This time there is great excitement among the people of my generation and my age,” said Nawab.
He disagreed with the skeptics who said it is an exercise in futility. “No, it is not. These elections are pretty educative. It is a process. We will have to go through it. We will soon learn the virtues of elections. It will take time.”
In Jeddah, polling agent of a candidate with tribal bonds Azmullah E. told Arab News that his candidate counted on support from members of his tribe, which was dominant in his constituency.
“My candidate has been meeting members of his tribe to ensure that they go to the polling booth and vote for him,” Azmullah said, adding that he used the same strategy in the last election as well.
Another voter, Muhammad Al-Ghamdi, was also of the view that clannish or family ties were important factors in winning in the municipal elections. Al-Ghamdi said candidates did not miss any family occasion after planning to contest the local government elections to canvass votes.
A candidate, who did not want his name published, told Arab News that he set up committees of relatives not only to ensure their votes but also to persuade their friends to vote for him. “This strategy yielded good results at the last election,” he said.
He added that candidates formed voting alliances with those in other districts, particularly from other tribes. Therefore, members of one candidate’s tribe would vote for the ally nominee in the constituency he was contesting and vice versa.
Arab News visited multiple voting centers in the city, and spoke to 26-year-old Mohammad Abdul Aziz, "Despite everything that has been said or reported, I actually went to my districts voting booth and cast my vote for one candidate."
"I have attended several Jeddah city council meeting sessions in the past and I was impressed with some of the topics and issues presented. I have not voted for anything in my life. I believe when it comes down to implementing change every citizens must carry a social responsibility. Now that women will start voting in municipal councils, this responsibility will be shared," said 32-year-old Jeddah resident Omar Hassan.
Undersecretary at the Asir Province Abdul Kareem Al-Hunaini voted at Booth No. 202 in Abha. Mayor of Asir Ibrahim Al-Khaleel said he visited a number of voting centers in the day and found that voting in the province progressed in a smooth manner as election officials were given sufficient training in arranging booths and facilitating the voting.
He said voters in large numbers started arriving at booths early in the morning and were asked to queue up. Voters from remote mountain villages arrived in trucks arranged by candidates.
Meanwhile, a candidate in Riyadh said: “One way of increasing voter turnout is to encourage electoral participation among youth. One possibility is to encourage candidates and groups to address Saudi youths directly during campaigning on university campuses and by discussing issues that are important to young voters."
On the complaints or irregularities noticed during the poll, Mohammed bin Abdullah A. Al-Khaldi, a candidate from Qatif region, said: "There were a few suggestions and complaints, which we will bring to the attention of officials."
Al-Khaldi refused to divulge any details, saying he will wait until the results of the elections, which are to be announced Saturday.
— Ghazanfar Ali Khan, Siraj Wahab, Sultan Al-Tamimi, Galal Fakkar and Nadiah Al-Fawaz contributed to this report.