AMMAN, Jordan, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- The Jordanian government is closely monitoring the country's national elections for the 16th parliament, officials said.
About 2.37 million Jordanians were eligible to vote in Tuesday's elections, The Jordan Times said, adding the government instituted a series of measures to guarantee free and fair elections, including linking the polling stations to an electronic monitoring system in the country's Interior Ministry.
The names of citizens casting a vote at one of the country's polling stations will appear on one of the monitors, said Samih Maaytah, a spokesman for the elections.
About 763 candidates, including 143 women, were hoping to be elected to one of the 120 seats in the lower house of Parliament, The Jordan Times said.
The country's 1,492 polling stations opened at 7 a.m. and will close at 7 p.m., the daily said, noting each of the 12 governorates has the right to extend the voting 2 hours longer if voters are still waiting.
Tuesday was declared a public holiday to ensure members of the public are able to vote, Prime Minister Samir Rifai said.
Two parties are boycotting the election, the Popular Unity Party and the Islamic Action Front, the political wing of the Muslim Brothers group, The Global Arab Network Web site said.
