MUSCAT, Oman — Two women were re-elected to an 83-member advisory council, according to preliminary results, in the country's first elections open to all citizens rather than a hand-picked elite, the Interior Minister said Sunday.
Early results showed Lujaina bint Mohsen Haider al-Za'bi, a businesswoman, had won 1,127 votes, while Ruhaila bint Amor al-Riyami, a former Ministry of Education employee, garnered 741 votes.
The two, who both won seats on the council in 2000 elections, are from the capital, Muscat.
Women in Oman, as in most of the Gulf, are veiled and largely segregated from men except in their homes, explaining why urban women fared better in the elections.
"This is a unique experience in the region," Al-Riyami said, "and the fact that two women got seats, in the middle of strong competition, proves that the elections were fair, and no one was favored."
The council has 68 new members, while 15 members were re-elected. Some 506 candidates, including 15 women, were running for seats on the three-year term Shura Majlis. The Islamic-style council has no formal powers but is consulted by the sultan on new laws and public policy.
Sultan Qaboos announced universal suffrage last year.