MANAMA — Bahraini voters returned to the polls on Saturday for a runoff election for the island nation’s new parliament.

The elections will determine the makeup of the 40-seat lower house of parliament. It follows a first-round vote last weekend, when only six candidates secured an outright majority to claim their seats.

“I am here to vote because I have to be part of the democratic process, which took 100 years to be completed in other countries,” said Zahra Gulam Taher, a Bahraini businesswoman from Jidhafs.

Six of 23 female candidates garnered enough votes last week to make it into the second round of voting.

The lower house of parliament has limited direct powers but carries important symbolism as part of political reforms begun more than a decade ago.

Members of a 40-seat upper house are appointed by King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa. — AP