Bahrain: Elections amid opposition clampdown

Voting appeared to proceed peacefully in the election for the 40-seat Council of Representatives (Majlis Al-Nuwab) on 24 November. Some 365,000 Bahraini men and women were eligible to vote for the 293 candidates who ran. The authorities announced a turnout of 67%, which is far higher than the 53% recorded at the last election in 2014. Only seven candidates gained enough votes in the first round, necessitating a second round of voting on 1 December.