Jordanians begin voting in local and provincial elections amid opposition boycott

Jordanian polling stations opened their doors to voters at 7 am local time on Tuesday as local and provincial elections got under way.

A total of 4,646 candidates -  including 845 women - are taking part in the elections and 1,850 polling stations have been set up.

Jordanian political parties, however, are notably absent from the process with only 2% of the candidates representing a political party and Jordan's main Islamist party, the Islamic Action Front, boycotting the vote.

Observers have said that the process is dominated by tribal and local interests, expecting a low turnout of around 30%.

Mohammed Kheir Al-Rawashda, a spokesperson for the Independent Election Authority, told The New Arab's Arabic-language service that the authority had "equipped all the provinces and polling stations with what was needed for election day".

He said that 55,000 security officers were protecting the election process.

The elections are being held under a controversial new local administration law which allows the Minister of Local Government to appoint two unelected members to every provincial and local council with full voting rights.

Jordan's previous local elections were held in August 2017.