DOHA: Some 19,396 voters have registered for the forthcoming Central Municipal Council (CMC) elections due this May.
Of the total, 10,612 (54.74 percent) are men and 8,780 (45.26 percent) women, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Interior.
Al Murrah, constituency No. 13, recorded the highest registration (2,787), followed by Muaither (constituency No. 12) with 2,399.
In Old Airport area, which is constituency No. 8, some 1,507 voters registered, said the statement, quoting the Supervising Committee of the fifth civic election.
The 29-member CMC has a four-year term. It first went to the polls in early 1999. Election for the second term was held in 2003 and for the last, in 2011.
Al Wakra (constituency No. 20) ranked next with 1,153 registering for the election.
The voter list for each of 29 constituencies is being prepared and will be announced soon, the committee said.
This is not the final list as deletions and additions of names will continue from January 28 until February 5.
The panel has again urged eligible voters who haven’t come forward and registered yet to do so.
The final list will be announced on March 3 and after this the next phase of the electoral process will begin — inviting nominations of candidates.
Late last year, the ministry re-demarcated the constituencies due to demographic changes in various areas following demolitions and ongoing development works.
Some constituencies, particularly in Doha, were left with fewer Qatari families as they shifted to the suburbs, and this necessitated re-demarcation.
The lowest voter registration was 21,995 in the first CMC election. The highest was recorded in 2011, at 32,662.
For the 2003 election, 24,178 voters had registered and in 2007, the number reached 28,139. The highest voter turnout was recorded in 1999 (79.7 percent) and the lowest in the second poll in 2003 (37.7 percent).
The voter turnout was 52.3 percent in 2007 and dropped to 43.3 percent in the 2011 election, official figures suggest.
For the upcoming election, registration began on January 11 and ended on January 22. It was done in all 29 constituencies.
Voters also apply through the ministry’s Metrash2 service.
The Peninsula
