[custom_adv] An eighty-year-old Emirati mother among the first persons to cast their votes during the Federal National Council (FNC) elections which began on Tuesday. [custom_adv] Early voting in the FNC elections 2019 commenced on October 1 and will continue until October 3 from 9am until 6pm. The main elections are slated for October 5. [custom_adv] At the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec), voting began on time on the first day of elections and voters were exciting about exercising their rights. [custom_adv] 495 candidates are competing for the 20 FNC seats, with 133 candidates from Abu Dhabi emirate. The other 20 representatives will be appointed by the rulers of the seven emirates. [custom_adv] Only 337,738 citizens out of more than one million Emiratis are eligible to take part in the elections. Those eligible were chosen by the rulers of the emirates. [custom_adv] On day one of the elections, central database verification of select members of the electoral college took place at the main polling station in Abu Dhabi in the presence of the candidates and their representatives to ensure the transparency of the voting system.
