May 16th, 2008 by Stephen

Elections will be held tomorrow to replace the outgoing Kuwaiti parliament, dissolved in March by Emir Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, who claims that his efforts to implement economic modernization reforms have been obstructed by the parliament, which has instead focused on local issues and pursuing Islamist objectives. David Pollock and Mehdi Khalaji of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy have a detailed pre-election analysis that examines the new electoral system that will make its debut, the role of the country’s Shi’a minority, and the electoral prospects of female candidates and Islamists.

This AKI article notes that Jenan Bushehri, considered by many to be the only one of the 27 female candidates to have a real chance of being elected, has adopted Barack Obama’s campaign slogan, “Yes we can.” The article also quotes another female candidate, Rula Dashti as saying that, “It is still too difficult for a woman in this country to be involved in politics.” In Kuwait Times, Hussein al-Qatari has written this useful guide to the parties, voting blocs, coalitions and tribal alliances likely to play a role in tomorrow’s elections.

Posted in Elections, Kuwait |