3,955 register as candidates for elections — IEC

AMMAN — On the first day of candidacy registration for the upcoming local twin elections, 3,955 Jordanian men and women registered across the Kingdom, the Independent Election Commission (IEC) said on Monday.  

A total of 824 candidates including 63 women registered to run for governorate council membership, while the number of candidates for the membership of municipal and local councils (elected as sub-councils to run the municipal affairs of districts within the same municipality) reached 2,687, including 496 women, IEC Spokesperson Jihad Momani said.

Meanwhile, 444 Jordanians registered to compete for mayorship, including only one woman.  

The candidacy registration for the August 15 elections will continue till Tuesday, with registration forms available for candidates from the IEC’s website. Forms should be submitted at the commission’s offices across the country before the closing date.

Candidates can withdraw their candidacy until 14 days prior to the voting date, in order to allow the candidates’ lists to take their final shape, IEC President Khaled Kalaldeh said recently  in remarks to The Jordan Times.

Monday also marked the beginning of the legal period for election campaigns.

Momani said the IEC teams officially started monitoring candidates’ campaigns on Monday and already registered some violations, including displaying pictures of His Majesty King Abdullah or logos of the state on advertising material.

Other violations were related to displaying promotional material in banned areas that blocked drivers’ sight at road intersections, Momani told The Jordan Times on the phone.

Meanwhile, he noted that the majority of violations were registered before the beginning of the legal promotional period, which will conclude 24 hours before voting starts on mid next month.

Candidates will have to remove any promotional material within seven days, starting from the election day, or if a court ruling rejects the candidacy application.