Impressive turnout in historic polls in UAE

Dubai, Dec 16 (UNI) The first ever elections in the United Arab Emirates to choose representatives to the Federal National Council (FNC) which will act as a consultative parliament recorded an impressive turnout.

An impressive turnout was recorded at the historic polls, which were going on smoothly, claimed Minister of State for FNC Affairs and Chairman of the National Election Committee Anwar Mohammad Gargash.

Elections will be held to choose representatives to 20 seats of the 40-member Council by the handpicked 6,689 members of the Electoral College.

Rest of the representatives will be appointed by the rulers.

The FNC has no legislative or oversight powers.

Mr Gargash said in Abu Dhabi on the first day of elections that the polls to the FNC were ''the first fundamental and historic step'' and featured one of the world's first ever fully automated systems.

Abu Dhabi and Fujairah went to polls in the first phase today while the other five emirates will have the polls later.

Some 450 candidates including 65 women are in the fray.

Election officials are billing the polls as a trial run to pave the way for universal suffrage including all the 800,000 nationals in the coming years.

Voters were casting their ballots by touching a computer screen in the e-vote before casting computer-generated red ballots in boxes as a backup.

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