National Assembly of Kuwait مجلس الأمة الكويتي Majlis al-ʾUmma al-Kuwaytiyy | |
|---|---|
| 18th Legislative Session | |
 Logo or emblem of the National Assembly | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
Term limits | None |
| History | |
New session started | June 20, 2023 |
| Leadership | |
Ahmed al-Sadoun since June 20, 2023 | |
Mohammed al-Mutair since June 20, 2023 | |
Secretary | Mubarak al-Tasha since June 20, 2023 |
Controller | Mohammed al-Huwaila since June 20, 2023 |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 50 elected members Up to 16 appointed members |
Political groups | Government
Elected members
|
Length of term | Four years |
| Elections | |
| Single non-transferable vote | |
Last election | April 4, 2024 |
Next election | 2028 |
| Meeting place | |
| Building of the National Assembly of Kuwait Kuwait City, Kuwait | |
| Website | |
| kna | |
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| Constitution |
 Kuwait portal |
The National Assembly (Arabic: مجلس الأمة) is the unicameral legislature of Kuwait. The National Assembly meets in Kuwait City. Because political parties are illegal in Kuwait,[1] candidates run as independents.[1] The National Assembly is made up of 50 elected members, then this 50 will be chosen from by the Emir and 16 direct appointed government ministers (ex officio members).[1]
The National Assembly is nominally elected but it operates in an authoritarian context where the Emir of Kuwait dominates politics and can dissolve the assembly.[2] However, in contrast to parliaments in other Gulf kingdoms, the Kuwaiti assembly has considerably more formal and informal power than elsewhere in the region.[3]
The assembly has frequently been banned or dissolved by the royal government in Kuwait. The assembly was banned from 1976 to 1981 and from 1986 to 1991, but each time restored due to popular protests.[3] From 2006 to March 2024, the assembly was dissolved 12 times.[3]
The National Assembly is the legislature in Kuwait, established in 1963.[4] Its predecessor, the 1938 National Assembly, was formally dissolved in 1939 after "one member, Sulaiman al-Adasani, in possession of a letter, signed by other Assembly members, addressed to Iraq's King Ghazi, requesting Kuwait's immediate incorporation into Iraq." This demand came after the merchant members of the Assembly attempted to extract oil money from Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, a suggestion refused by him and upon which he instigated a crackdown which arrested the Assembly members in 1939.[5]
The National Assembly can have up to 50 MPs. Fifty deputies are elected by one non-transferable vote to serve four-year terms. Members of the cabinet also sit in the parliament as deputies. The constitution limits the size of the cabinet to 16. The cabinet ministers have the same rights as the elected MPs, with the following two exceptions: they do not participate in the work of committees, and they cannot vote when an interpolation leads to a no-confidence vote against one of the cabinet members. In 2001, Nathan J. Brown claimed Kuwait's National Assembly is the most independent parliament in the Arab world;[6] in 2009, Israeli scholar Eran Segal claimed it is among the "strongest" parliaments in the Middle East.[7] As per Article 107 of the Kuwait constitution, the National Assembly can be dissolved by the Emir by decree, giving the reasons for the dissolution. However, the National Assembly shall not be dissolved again on the same grounds, and elections for the new Assembly must be held within a period not exceeding two months from the date of the dissolution.[8]
Kuwaiti women regained the right to vote in 2005. Women first won seats in the National Assembly in the 2009 election, in which four women, Aseel al-Awadhi, Rola Dashti, Massouma al-Mubarak and Salwa al-Jassar, were elected.[7]
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Main article: Kuwait National Assembly Building |
The parliament building was designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, who also designed the Sydney Opera House.
While political parties are not legally recognized in Kuwait, a number of political factions exist. The house is composed of different political factions in addition to independents:
