The National Assembly (, ''Majlis al-ʾUmma'') is the

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...

legislature A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial power ...

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

. The National Assembly met in

Kuwait City Kuwait City (; ) is the capital and largest city of Kuwait. Located at the heart of the country on the south shore of Kuwait Bay on the Persian Gulf, it is the political, cultural and economic center of the emirate, containing Kuwait's Seif Pal ...

. The National Assembly is made up of 50 elected members and 16 directly appointed government ministers (ex officio members). The assembly was frequently dissolved by the Emir of Kuwait. From 2006 to 2024, the assembly was dissolved 13 times. The assembly has been suspended since 10 May 2024 for a four-year constitutional re-evaluation due to frequent inaction, corruption, bribery, vote purchasing and political deadlock.

Overview

The National Assembly is the

in Kuwait, established in 1963. 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 Damat Sheikh Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1885 – 29 January 1950) () was the tenth ruler of the Sheikhdom of Kuwait from 29 March 1921 until his death on 29 January 1950. Biography Ahmad was the son of Jaber II Al-Sabah, who was the eighth r ...

, a suggestion refused by him and upon which he instigated a crackdown which arrested the Assembly members in 1939. The National Assembly normally consists of 65 members; this total includes 50 elected deputies as well as 15 cabinet members directly appointed by the Emir. 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. 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. In contrast to parliaments in other Gulf kingdoms, the Kuwaiti assembly has considerably more formal and informal power than elsewhere in the region. The assembly was previously suspended from 1976-1981 and 1986-1991.

Gender balance

Kuwaiti women gained the

right to vote Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in representative democracy, public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in ...

in 2005. Women first won seats in the National Assembly in the 2009 election, in which four women,

Aseel al-Awadhi Aseel al-Awadhi (born 1969) is a former member of the National Assembly of Kuwait. She was a professor of philosophy at Kuwait University before entering politics. Al-Awadhi first stood for a seat on the National Assembly in 2008, losing the elect ...

Rola Dashti Rola Abdulla Dashti (; born 1964) is a Kuwaiti economist and business executive and former politician and minister. Dashti lobbied for the May 2005 decree permitting Women in Arab societies, Kuwaiti women to run for parliamentary elections for the ...

, Massouma al-Mubarak and Salwa al-Jassar, were elected.

Building

The parliament building was designed by Danish architect

Jørn Utzon Jørn Oberg Utzon (; 9 April 191829 November 2008) was a Danish architect. In 1957, he won an international design competition for his design of the Sydney Opera House in Australia. Utzon's revised design, which he completed in 1961, was the b ...

, who also designed the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue Performing arts center, performing arts centre in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive b ...

Political factions

While political parties are not legal in Kuwait, a number of political factions existed. The house was composed of different political factions: * The

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

bloc. * The Shaabi (

populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...

) bloc: A coalition of populists (Sunni and Shia), liberals and nationalist political organizations with a focus on

middle-class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...

issues. The Popular Action Bloc is their main political organization. * The Islamist bloc: Consisting of Sunni Islamist members. Kuwait's 2024 elections witnessed an increase in voter turnout.

References

{{Authority control 1963 establishments in Kuwait

Government of Kuwait

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...