Bhutan's king has called for a high turnout among the kingdom's 300,000 eligible voters

About 61 per cent of 318,000 Bhutanese eligible to vote cast their ballots by early Monday afternoon, Deki Pema, an election commission official, said.
 
The king had called for a large turnout and urged voters to choose between two markedly similar parties.
 
"First and foremost, you must vote. Every single person must exercise his or her franchise," King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck said in a statement published in the nation's newspapers.
 
Voters chose members of a 47-seat national assembly, or lower house of the parliament, in Monday's election, which was declared a national holiday.
 
Bhutan 's transformation towards a democratic constitutional monarchy was started by the Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the former king of Bhutan.

He handed over daily administration to a council of ministers in 2001, before stepping down in December 2006.

No enthusiasm

The introduction of democracy is designed to ensure the continued popularity of Bhutanese monarchy and avoid a repeat of unrest that shook the nearby kingdom of Nepal two years ago.

After the election, Bhutan's 28-year-old, Oxford-educated monarch will remain head of state and the two political parties standing have stuck closely to the king's vision.
 
Both the People's Democratic Party (PDP) and the Druk Phuensum Tshogpa (DPT) have candidates that served as prime ministers under royal rule.

The PDP's main election slogan was for the "well-being of everyone", while the DPT said it iwas committed to "growth with equity and justice".

Both promote Gross National Happiness (GNH), the king's all-encompassing political philosophy that seeks to balance material progress with spiritual well-being.

The isolated kingdom has remained wary of embracing the consumerist trappings of the modern world, only allowing the entry of the internet and television in 1999.

Turnout expectations

Officials had said they expected a more than 70 per cent turnout after tepid responses in last year's mock polls to familiarise voters with the process.

"The political parties have put immense pressure on people to vote. So they will turn up in huge numbers," said chief election commissioner Kunzang Wangdi.

Bhutan has maintained a traditional way of life for centuries [AFP]

People could only cast their vote in their home towns so thousands took leave to go to their remote villages.

Kuldip Nayar, an Indian political commentator on South Asian affairs, said the vote signalled only a limited move towards democracy.

"The feeling is that Bhutan is going to stay a monarchy in the garb of democracy," he said.

"There are thousands of Bhutanese outside Bhutan who have not been allowed to come in. They are in Nepal, they are in India.

"The electoral rolls have [also] bee very selective. It is, you could say, a move from a monarchy to a very limited democracy."

The results of the vote are expected on Tuesday morning.

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