Voter turnout likely to be high

There was a festive atmosphere in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, as voters queued early on Wednesday morning before the polls opened for the country’s most competitive elections in its history.

Yemenis are voting for their president and for two levels of local government.

With just a few hours till polls were due to close at 6pm local time on Wednesday, turnout appeared destined to be high. Last week, some 86 percent of eligible Yemenis said they planned to vote in the elections, according to a poll by the independent Yemen Polling Centre (YPC).

A number of minor breaches of electoral procedures were noted by observers, but these are not expected to sway the result. “Logistically, things are going fine today,” said John Landry, chief of United Nations Development Programme’s electoral support project.

However, some analysts feared that a potential flashpoint for violence will be the vote-counting, which will begin immediately after polls close, and the announcement of results.

Security incidents darkened the day somewhat with deadly shootings in some governorates, including Al Jawf, Taiz and Amran.

Coming on the heels of recent arrests of several terrorist suspects, attempted suicide bombings at oil facilities and campaign-period shootings, the incidents have made for a tense election day in some locations.

“Security is tight, so God willing there won’t be any [further] incidents,” said a voter near to Tahrir Square, in Sana’a, where a man was arrested with explosives earlier in the day.

“There are 13 security personnel here,” said a policeman as he frisked queuing voters for weapons at a polling centre near Tahrir Square where 5,000 voters were expected to vote. “Everything will be fine.”

On the whole, voters were enthusiastic in Sana’a. “The election is good this time. All free, like in Europe and America,” said a smiling fruit stall owner.

Women voters appeared at polling centres in droves – although there were significantly fewer female than voters male.

To assist voter understanding, ballot papers and boxes were colour-coded. Anecdotal observations from polling centres indicate significantly fewer people participating in the local elections compared to the presidential elections.

“I’m voting for president, governorate and district level,” said Sana’a resident Kamal as he and his wife waited for the rush to die down before going to the local polling centre.

“The last elections were a joke. This time the president will get really shaken up. He’ll still win, but he’ll get a fright. This is a good thing,” Kamal said.

VJ/AR/ED