NEC announces details of preliminary list of candidates for FNC election

The National Election Committee, NEC, today announced the details of the preliminary list of candidates for the Federal National Council, FNC, election.

Many candidates from around the country applied to contest during the opening candidacy period from 18th to 22nd August, 2019, in nine centres around the country.

The preliminary list includes 499 candidates, with 135 coming from Abu Dhabi, 90 from Dubai, 114 from Sharjah, 26 from Ajman, 61 from Ras Al Khaimah, 20 from Umm Al Qaiwain, and 53 from Fujairah.

After President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan issued a decision to raise the percentage of female FNC members to 50 percent, 182 female candidates are present on the list, with 49 coming from Abu Dhabi, 39 from Dubai, 39 from Sharjah, 22 from Ras Al Khaimah, five from Ajman, eight from Umm Al Qaiwain, and 20 from Fujairah.

A total of 317 male candidates are also on the list, with 86 coming from Abu Dhabi, 51 from Dubai, 75 from Sharjah, 39 from Ras Al Khaimah, 21 from Ajman, 12 from Umm Al Qaiwain, and 33 from Fujairah.

Members of electoral committees wishing to become candidates submitted their applications to the "Emirates Committees," which then resubmitted their applications to the "FNC Election Management Committee," which reviewed their applications and verified that all conditions and requirements have been met.

NEC announces preliminary list of candidates for FNC election

While announcing the preliminary list of candidates for the Federal Nation Council, FNC, election, Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser Al Owais, Minister of State for Federal National Council Affairs and Chairman of the National Election Commission, NEC, praised the efforts of the teams of national electoral committees to receive candidates for membership in the FNC.

Al Owais also called on UAE citizens to ensure that their names are included in the lists of electoral committees, so that they can complete their national duty, while stressing that it is their responsibility to choose the best candidates.

"Contributing to the electoral process is a national responsibility, and is highlighted by the active participation of members of electoral committees in the selection of qualified candidates capable of serving their country and people," he said.

The preliminary list of 499 candidates, including 182 women, met the conditions and rules related to the nomination process.

For three days starting tomorrow, the NEC will accept objections to the participation of any candidate. On 1st September, it will announce its response to these objections.

Every member of the NEC may challenge the candidacy of their local candidate by filling in and submitting the appropriate form, provided that their appeal is reasonable and supported by appropriate documents.

555 applications received for FNC elections, including 200 by women

The final day for the registration of applications for the Federal National Council, FNC, elections saw 98 applications, taking the total figure up to 555, including 200 from women in five days.

The total number of applications in Abu Dhabi amounted to 155, while Dubai saw 98, and Sharjah 127. Ajman received 32 applications, Umm Al Quwain had 23, Ras Al Khaimah 65, and Fujairah 55.

On the fifth day, Thursday, Abu Dhabi received 27 applications, Dubai 26, Sharjah 18, and Ajman saw six. While no applications were registered in Umm Al Quwain on the fifth day, Ras Al Khaimah recorded 14 applications and Fujairah saw seven.

The number of applications submitted by women on the fifth day amounted to 13 in Abu Dhabi, 12 in Dubai, eight in Sharjah, and one in Ajman. While Umm Al Qaiwain did not register any applications for women on the fifth day, Ras Al Khaimah recorded four and Fujairah saw two, taking the total number of female applications to 40 on that day.

The registration of candidates for the FNC elections went on for five days until Thursday, 22nd August, 2019, amidst a large turnout of women and youth to submit applications, in addition to the significant presence of the people of determination.

According to the FNC 2019 election schedule, the NEC will announce the preliminary list of candidates on 25th August, after which it will open the door for filing appeals against candidates from 26th to 28th August, and the commission will respond to appeals on 1st September, 2019. The final list of candidates will be announced on 3rd September, 2019, and the campaigning will begin on 8th September, 2019, and go on for 27 days.

Rashed Al Ghafli, Vice Chairman of the Emirate of the Abu Dhabi FNC Elections Committee, affirmed that the impressive response to the elections indicates a growing sense of political awareness compared to the previous elections.

He added that the Abu Dhabi Committee witnessed a significant turnout from Emirati women in yet a new direct reflection of the women's empowerment drive championed under the country's wise leadership.

Al Ghafli noted that the Committee will continue its work in the coming period in cooperation and coordination with the National Election Committee.

457 applications for national elections received in four days, including 160 from women

The fourth day for the registration of applications for the Federal National Council, FNC, elections saw 85 applications, taking the figure to 457 in four days, including 160 from women.

The total number of applications in Abu Dhabi at the end of the fourth day reached 128, with Dubai numbering 72, and Sharjah 109. A total of 26 applications were received in Ajman, with Umm Al Quwain at 23, Ras Al Khaimah at 51, and Fujairah at 48.

On the fourth day, Abu Dhabi received 18 applications and Dubai 19, while Sharjah had 15 and Ajman 10. Umm Al Quwain saw two applications, Ras Al Khaimah 14, and Fujairah received seven.

The number of applications submitted by women on the fourth day was four in Abu Dhabi, six each in Dubai and Sharjah, and three in Ajman. Umm Al Quwain did not register any applications for women on the fourth day. Five applications were registered in Ras Al Khaimah, while three applications were registered in Fujairah, bringing the number of applications from women on the fourth day to 27.

The nine registration centres in the UAE will continue to receive applications for registration in the FNC 2019 elections until Thursday, 22nd August, 2019.

According to the schedule of the FNC 2019 elections, the NEC will announce the preliminary list of candidates on 25th August, 2019. The final list will be announced on 3rd September, 2019, while campaigning will begin from 8th September, 2019, and continue for 27 days.

Emirati women to scale peak of empowerment during FNC Elections 2019

Emirati women will scale the peak of their empowerment journey during the FNC Elections 2019 to be held next October, by achieving 50 percent representation in parliament.

This is in line with the implementation of Resolution No. 01 of 2019 issued by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan on raising the representation of women in the FNC to 50 percent.

In the following report, the Emirates News Agency, WAM, monitors the main milestones in the empowerment of Emirati women in the parliamentary field.

The Women's Empowerment programme launched by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa in 2005 represented a significant milestone in the history of Emirati women, and in 2006, Emirati women participated in the first FNC elections as voters and candidates.

During the first election, Dr. Amal Qubaisi, the current FNC Speaker, won a seat in the FNC elections and eight other women were appointed in the parliament, with women representation in the FNC being 22 percent.

The 2006 voter list comprised around 1,000 women from 6,595 voters and 65 women were FNC member candidates from a total of 465 candidates, with a rate of 14.25 percent.

During the second election in 2011, women accounted for 46 percent of the total number of voters, while 85 women ran for elections. After the announcement of the election results, women maintained a 22 percent rate of representation in parliament.

During the 2015 election, women voters accounted for 48 percent of the total of 224,281 voters.

The decree of the formation of the FNC in its 16th legislative chapter in November 2015 comprised nine women, and one of them won a seat in the elections, while the rest were appointed as members. One of them then went on to be appointed as the Minister of State for the Federal National Council Affairs.

The appointment of Dr. Amal Abdullah Al Qubaisi as the FNC Speaker in the 16th legislative chapter represented a historic step by the UAE, as she was the first woman in the Arab region and the Middle East to chair a parliamentary organisation.

In the 2019 election, women comprised 170,967 voters, accounting for 50.62 percent of the total number of voters at 337,738.

The numbers of voters included 101,549 voters in Abu Dhabi, including 52,470 women, with a percentage of 51.67, and 60,772 voters in Dubai, including 30,879 women, with a percentage of 50.81.

In Sharjah, the voter list included 32,856 women from a total of 64,293 voters at 51.10 percent, while in Ajman, the total number of voters amounted to 10,165, including 4,641 women at 45.66 percent.

In Umm Al Qaiwain, the total number of voters amounted to 6,653, including 3,405 women at 51.18 percent. In Ras Al Khaimah, the total number of voters amounted to 55,289 including 27,218 women at 49.23 percent, and in Fujairah, women voters amounted to 19,498 from a total of 39,017 voters at 49.97 percent.

288 applications received for 'national' elections within two days, including 103 from women

Registration centres for the Federal National Council, FNC, 2019 election candidates set up across the UAE continued to receive applications for the second consecutive day.

By the end of the day, the National Elections Commission received 94 applications, including 36 from women, from 8:00 to 15:00.

On the first day, amid a high turnout of candidates, the National Elections Commission received 194 applications, 67 of which were from women.

The number of candidates who applied during the first two days reached 288 in all emirates and included 103 females.

The registrations will continue until Thursday, 22nd August, 2019, according to the National Committee for the FNC 2019 elections.

The number of applications for the first and second days in the emirate of Abu Dhabi reached 86, covering Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Al Dhafra, including 33 from women. The number reached 33 in Dubai, including 16 from women, while Sharjah saw 74 applications, including 23 from women. Ajman saw 10 applications, including one from a woman. Umm Al Qaiwain received 17, including eight from women. Ras Al Khaimah had 33 applications, including 11 from women, and Fujairah saw 35 applications, of which 11 were from women.

The registrations began on 18th August, 2019, and will continue until next Thursday.

According to the timetable of the FNC 2019 elections, the NEC will announce the preliminary list of candidates on 25th August, 2019. The final list will be announced on 3rd September, 2019, while the campaigning will start from 8th September, 2019, and will last for 27 days.

Candidate registration open for Emirati parliamentary elections 2019 until 22 August

The National Election Committee, NEC, today announced that nine candidate registration centres across the UAE are now accepting applications for Federal National Council, FNC, membership and will continue to do so until August 22, 2019.

A total of 194 candidates registered on the first day, today, for the upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled for October 2019, 67 of whom are women.

In a press statement issued today, the NEC said the candidate registration centres across the UAE started Sunday and that the official working hours of the centers extend from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday to Thursday.

In Abu Dhabi, candidate registration centres are located on the second floor of the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the headquarters of the Abu Dhabi Emirates Committee, as well as the Chairman Hall of the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, and Madinat Zayed Majlis. To date, 52 candidates from Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Al Dhafra have registered to participate in the upcoming FNC elections, 20 of whom are women.

In Dubai, 21 candidates applied on the first day of registration, nine of whom are women. A total of 47 applied so far in Sharjah, 15 of whom are females.

The candidate registration center in Dubai is located in the Dubai World Trade Centre, Hatta Halls C and D. In Sharjah, the candidates have submitted their applications at the center in Hall 1 of the Sharjah Advisory Council building.

Seven Ajman-based candidates have submitted their applications at the Sheikh Humaid Hall in the Ajman Museum. Umm Al Qaiwain’s candidate registration centre, at the Social Development Center in Umm Al Qaiwain, received 13 applications.

Ras Al Khaimah Cultural Centre, the emirate’s official candidate registration centre, has received 28 registrations. Finally, Fujairah’s candidate registration centre, situated on the eighth floor of the Fujairah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has received 26 applications so far.

Tariq Hilal Lootah, Undersecretary of the Ministry of State for Federal National Council Affairs and Chairman of the Management Committee of the FNC’s 2019 elections commended the seamless registration process and the preparedness of the Emirates Committees’ teams to receive candidate applications.

During his tour of the candidate registration centres in Dubai, Sharjah, and Ajman, His Excellency praised the efforts of the specialised teams within the Emirates Committees that are relentlessly working to raise awareness of the significance of participating in the electoral process.

He said: "I am confident in our ability to host a transparent and successful election. Participating in this endeavour is a privilege for every national, we encourage all eligible UAE nationals to nominate themselves as candidates for this important national duty, or motivate capable candidates to apply, or come out and vote for their chosen candidate on election day."

The timeline for the FNC Elections 2019 is as follows – on Sunday, August 25, NEC will announce the preliminary list of candidates.

The following three days will be open to the public should they wish to submit objection letters against any of the listed candidates. On Sunday, September 1, NEC will announce its response to the objections received. The final list of candidates will be released on Tuesday, September 3. Wednesday, September 4, marks the first day of the period provided for candidates to submit the names of their agents as per the executive orders in this matter.

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