In an historic election for women in Saudi Arabia, women won 20 seats out of about 2,000 seats available on local councils. It was historic because even though women in Saudi Arabia are banned from driving, they were allowed to vote and be candidates for the first time. Women had to be creative in their campaigning to work around rules about women traveling unaccompanied and forced segregation of men and women. Since Saudi Arabia is a monarchy, the royal rulers make all the important political decisions and smaller decisions are left to local councils. Even considering the restrictions on women, this is a step toward women having a voice in Saudi Arabia.
Story Length: 5:31
© 2015 National Public Radio, Inc. Used with the permission of NPR. All rights reserved.
AIR DATE: 12/14/2015
November 16, 2015
3:10
In Myanmar, also known as Burma, there was an important parliamentary election. This election was seen as a test of the powerful Myanmar military’s willingness to have a fair, democratic election. The pro-democracy opposition looks like it is headed for a victory but the votes are still being counted. Suu Kyi, the country’s most popular politician, is a leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD). Supporters of her party have been celebrating their apparent victory by gathering in the streets. Listen to hear more about these historic elections.
Read MoreOctober 28, 2014
4:23
On Tuesday November 4th, there is a national mid-term election with all 435 seats in the US House of Representatives up for election and 33 of 100 Senate seats are contested. 38 states are electing governors. 33 states allow qualified voters to cast their ballots early. But that’s more complicated than it sounds. Listen to this public radio story to learn how voting early can be problematic.
Read More
