Municipal elections in

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

were held for the fifth time on 13 May 2015. Five women contested the polls as candidates. Two women were elected to the

Central Municipal Council The first municipal council in Qatar was formed in the early 1950s and it was reorganized in 1956. Doha Municipality, Doha municipality came into being in May 1963. The Ministry of Municipal Affairs was established in 1972 as a government body re ...

(CMC) after winning their constituencies, heralding the first time two women have occupied seats in the council. This round of elections witnessed the merging of a number of depopulated constituencies and the addition of several new constituencies. Early indications suggested that the voter turnout would be low. However, the voter turnout in various constituencies ranged from 51% to 87%, with an overall voter turnout of 70%. This was a marked increase from the 43% voter turnout in the

2011 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2011. * Local electoral calendar 2011 * National electoral calendar 2011 * 2011 United Nations Security Council election Africa * 2011 Beninese presidential election * 2011 Beninese parliamentary el ...

. The total number of voters was 21,735. There were 109 candidates.

Background

According to government officials, 136 candidates signed up to run. Twenty-five candidates withdrew from the elections before the onset of voting, including three candidates who withdrew on 12 May. This resulted in the contention of three constituencies (1, 27, and 28) by single candidates who were declared winners by

acclamation An acclamation is a form of election that does not use a ballot. It derives from the ancient Roman word ''acclamatio'', a kind of ritual greeting and expression of approval towards imperial officials in certain social contexts. Voting Voice vot ...

one day prior to ballots being cast. Constituency numbers 4, 9, 21, 22, 24 and 26 were contested by two candidates each. Conversely, constituency numbers 10, 11, 13, 18, 19 and 20 were vied for by six candidates apiece. Only 5 female candidates ran for election. This invigorated discussion on the possible establishment of a quota for female candidates.

Results

References

{{Authority control Municipal elections in Qatar Elections in Qatar 2015 elections in Asia 2015 in Qatar