Saudi Arabian Women Granted Right To Vote

     This past Sunday, September 25, Saudi Arabia took a huge step toward gender equality.

      King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia announced that Saudi Arabian women will be given the right to vote in the 2015 election, as well as nominate themselves and other candidates for the Shura Council, a council that advises the monarchy. 

     “We refuse to marginalize the role of women in Saudi society in every field of work, women have the right to submit their candidacy for municipal council membership and have the right to take part in submitting candidates in accordance with Sharia (Islamic law),” Abdullah said.

 
     This announcement comes as a substantial move toward gender equality in a country where women are still not allowed to drive, open bank accounts or live on their own. Women are also still required to stay covered in public.
 
     King Abdullah officially gained power in 2005, but had effectively been ruling since his brother, the preceding king, suffered a stroke in the mid-1990s. Since gaining power, Abdullah has made reforms in areas of education and has suggested support for women’s rights within the limits of Islamic law.
 
     Women will not be allowed to vote in Saudi Arabia’s upcoming elections this Thursday, September 29.
 
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