Women in Saudi Arabia Vote for the First Time Ever

Women in Saudi Arabia have voted for the first time ever.

The conservative nation has opened the polls for women Saturday morning, allowing them to vote in municipal elections. The country is also allowing women to run for office.

The nation's officials reported that a total of 979 female candidates and 130,637 female voters participated. There were a total of 5,938 male candidates.

"This is a day for all Saudi women if they voted or not," said Latifa al-Bazei, 53 reported by The Washington Post. "We are gaining a right that was kept from half the country for too long."'

"We expect, we hope, there will be women winners," said the spokesman for the government ministry, Hamad Saad al-Omar. "If they lose, it's possible they could be appointed depending on the needs."

Despite the progress that Saudi Arabia has made in gender equality, many critics have noted that the certain restrictions in place still make it very difficult for women to exercise their new freedoms.

The Human Rights Watch pointed out that women running for office would have to prove their identity and residence, which many of them have stated are very difficult tasks. Registration centers for women are also very limited. On top of these problems, female candidates cannot campaign as effectively as men since they are not allowed to speak with male voters.

"Saudi women have faced significant obstacles in their fight for their right to vote and run in the municipal council elections, but their participation on December 12 will send a strong signal to Saudi society that women are continuing the long march toward greater participation in public life," Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director for Human Rights Watch, said in a statement reported by CNN.

Activists have expressed their concerns over whether or not progress for women would be stalled if not even one female candidate is elected.

"My fear is that at this stage we have momentum, but once things settle, and if women are not elected, life goes back to normal," spokeswoman Fatin Bundagji said to Foreign Policy. "The impact all depends on how the elections go."

A portion of the seats will still be selected by the King.

The results are expected to be announced on Sunday.