CAIRO: Saudi Arabia's King Abdallah granted women the right to vote and run as candidates in municipal elections set for 2015. Saudi Arabia is scheduled to hold local elections on Thursday, however, women are not allowed to participate in this round of elections. King Abdullah made the announcement about the 2015 elections on Sunday in his annual speech before the Shura Council. In the speech, the King also vowed to appoint women to the currently all-male Shura Council in the next term. “Because we refuse to marginalize women in society in all roles that comply with Sharia, we have decided, after deliberation with our senior ulama and others … to involve women in the Shura Council as members, starting from the next term,” he said. Saudi activists have called for the boycott of Thursday's elections because women were excluded from the ballot. Nearly 5,000 men will compete in Thursday's elections. Saudi Arabia held its first round of municipal elections in 2005. Half of the Kingdom's municipal council is elected through a popular vote, and the government appoints the other half. BM
