Lateefa Al Gaood is a Bahraini

Bahrain

' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...

 politician. In 2006, she became the first female candidate to be elected

Bahraini parliamentary election, 2006

Bahrain held parliamentary elections on 25 November 2006 for the 40-seat lower house of parliament, the Chamber of Deputies, as well as municipal elections. There was a 72% turnout in the first round of polling...

 to the Council of Representatives of Bahrain

Council of Representatives of Bahrain

The Council of Representatives , sometimes translated as the "Chamber of Deputies", is the name given to the lower house of the Bahraini National Assembly, the main legislative body of Bahrain....

. She won by default after the other two candidates in her constituency withdrew from the race in the middle of October before campaigning began. She was also the first woman anywhere in the Gulf region

Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...

 to win in a legislative general election. She represents the sixth constituency of the Southern Governorate

Southern Governorate

The Southern Governorate is the largest of the five governorates of Bahrain. It includes parts of Bahrain's old municipalities - Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Ar Rifa' wa al Mintaqah al Janubiyah, and Juzur Hawar...

. Due to her previous electoral failure she stood for a different constituency in 2006 to increase her chances of getting elected. She is currently the only female member of the Council of Representatives. She graduated from the University of Nottingham

University of Nottingham

The University of Nottingham is a public research university based in Nottingham, United Kingdom, with further campuses in Ningbo, China and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia...

 in 1996. She also holds diplomas from Helwan University

Helwan University

Helwan University is a public university based in Helwan in Egypt. It comprises 18 faculties as well as 50 research centers.Generally, it is known for engineering and business studies...

 in Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

 as well as the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration

Darden Graduate School of Business Administration

The University of Virginia Darden School of Business is the graduate business school associated with the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. The Darden School is one of the world's leading business schools, offering MBA, Ph.D. and Executive Education programs...

 in Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

. She used to work for the Bahraini Ministry of Finance.

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