Tunisian capital gets first woman mayor

By Enes Canli

TUNIS (AA) - In a first, a woman became mayor of the Tunisian capital.

Suad Ibrahim of the Ennahda Movement party bagged 33.8 percent votes in Sunday's local elections.

Her party won the local elections with 27.5 percent of the total votes, according to state-run broadcaster.

The voting process ended at 6.00 p.m. (1700GMT) with a low turnout of 33.7 percent, the High Election Commission said.

According to unofficial results, Nidaa Tounes, the second largest party with 55 deputies in the parliament, ranked second in the elections with 22.5 percent of the votes.

Owing to security concerns, 179 polling stations remained closed.

The official results are expected to be announced by May 9.

The local elections are seen as the next step in the democratic transition of the country, following the popular uprising that ousted longtime autocrat Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011.