On Saturday, Municipal elections began in Saudi Arabia. For the first time, a total of 978 women registered as candidates, alongside 5,938 men. Women for the first time, stood as candidates, despite the kingdom being only country where are restricted to drive.

During campaign appearances, female candidates had to be represented by a male or speak behind a partition. Officials revealed that nearly 130,000 women registered to vote. However the male voter registration number is 1.35 million. The first woman registering for vote, Salma al-Rashed told BBC, “It felt really good.”

“Change is a big word but the election is the way to make sure we are really represented.”

Even elections are rare in Saudi Arabia. The Saturday election will just be the third time in the history where Saudis went for polls. Between 1965 and 2005, for 40 years there were no elections.

Late King Abdullah took the decision to allow women to participate in the election. This is the key part of his legacy. Later on Saturday, the election results are expected.

-Sumana