Kuwaitis were casting ballots Thursday in a snap vote to elect the fourth parliament in less than six years. Women voters lined up in short queues at voting stations set up especially for them, as lines of men formed at separate polling booths. Female voters make up 54 percent of the electorate and 23 women are among 286 candidates running for the 50-seat legislative body. Voter traffic was low in the morning but picked up rapidly later, especially in tribal constituencies where men stood in long queues at polling centers. The snap poll is taking place after Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah dissolved parliament. Some voters expressed concern that the election, which comes after one of the most aggressive campaigns since Kuwait introduced democracy in 1962, would not help return stability. “We are very frustrated and worried about what is happening in Kuwait,” said one woman, Umm Saud, after casting her vote at Jabriya, 15 km south of Kuwait City. __
