IEC begins issuing new election cards for by-election in Jordan

The Independent Elections Commission IEC on Sunday began issuing new cards for eligible voters who will next month elect two deputies to fill vacant Lower House seats in the Amman second district and Karak sixth district. Head of the commission's Data and Internet Department, Hisham Hajaya, said up to 200,000 cards will be dispensed bearing the words "by-election, ballot box number, voter serial number and April 2013" to distinguish them from the old ballot documents. He said the distribution of the cards, which began at the IEC headquarters in cooperation with the Civil Status Department, will take two weeks, adding that voter records will be updated and that the names of those who died or lost their nationality or people who joined security bodies after the Jan. 23 polls for the Kingdom's 17th parliament will be dropped from voter lists. Hajaya said each polling or vote-counting centre will be provided with the voters' cards to facilitate balloting adding that the IEC will also post voters' lists on its website. Meanwhile, IEC spokesman Hussein Bani Hani said a three-day registration of candidates contesting the two seats will begin on Saturday, calling on all wishing to run to provide the commission with all papers needed under the law.