Is it permissible for a woman in Algeria to vote?

The questioner : ... In the matter of elections, you mentioned that women should be behind the men. Does this mean that it is not permissible for a woman to vote?

The Shaykh : What is permissible for men, O Shaykh?

The questioner : Allahu Akbar. Well, our Shaykh, some of the brothers mentioned that when they read the letter you sent to Algeria, in one of the questions, you had permitted a woman to go out to vote. So I do not know how to understand this?

The Shaykh : Did you read the treatise?

The questioner : It reached us unclear on the fax, so I read only part of it.

The Shaykh : We have always said, and we say in the letter, that we do not advise a Muslim to nominate himself in elections. This is regarding the one who wants to nominate himself. If there are elections in an Islamic country and the parties put forward their members, and a large part of these parties is not Islamic, such as the Ba'athists, the communists, the materialists, and the like, then it is not permissible, without any doubt, to vote for any of them. Then there may be Islamic groups and parties that also put themselves forward to be representatives in the Islamic parliament. In this case, we say, based on the jurisprudential principle that states that if a Muslim falls between two evils, he should choose the lesser of the two, that Muslims should vote for the individuals who are known to adopt the methodology of the Salaf, the Book and the Sunnah, and what our righteous predecessors were upon. This is what we have said, and we say it always and forever. In addition, if women do not mix with men, and they are wearing the Shari'ah-prescribed jilbab, then it is permissible for them to increase the votes of those who choose the Salafi individuals. This is what we have said, and we say it always and forever. There is no doubt that in this case, the original ruling is that there are no elections in Islam. But this does not mean that we should not address the emerging issue within the limits of the Islamic rules that are suitable for every time and place. I give an example that every Muslim knows: the prohibited things, such as carrion and others, are permissible in cases of dire necessity. From this, the scholars derived the principle of taking the lesser of two harms, because either this person eats the prohibited thing to save himself, or he throws himself into destruction. If the lesser of the two harms is to eat what Allah has forbidden, because Allah has permitted it in this case, then let no one think that I am contradictory. No, I am not contradictory. In an Islamic society, there are no elections; rather, there are the people of knowledge, the people of resolving and binding, who, as we said in a previous statement, are the ones who choose the Muslim ruler or the caliph who rules over the Muslims by the Book and the Sunnah, and not the general public and the common people. Among them are the righteous, among them are the wicked, and among them are those who sell their conscience for a few coins. Perhaps you will clarify this with the tape that reached you, if Allah wills.

The questioner: May Allah will it.