Senate Of The Dominican Republic
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The Senate of the Dominican Republic () is the
upper house An upper house is one of two Legislative chamber, chambers of a bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house. The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restricted p ...
in the
bicameral Bicameralism is a type of legislature that is divided into two separate Deliberative assembly, assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate ...
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 ...
of the
Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...
, and together with the
Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...
makes up the
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Third Title, Chapter 1 in the First Section of the Dominican Constitution. Each
province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
, and the
Distrito Nacional The Distrito Nacional (; D.N.) is a subdivision of the Dominican Republic enclosing the capital Santo Domingo. It is not in any of the provinces, but in practice, it acts as a province on its own. Before October 16, 2001, the Distrito Nacional wa ...
, regardless of population, is represented by one senator who serves for a four-year term, with possibility of reelection. The Senate Chamber is located in the west wing of the Congress Palace, in
Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...
. The Chamber of Deputies convenes in the east wing of the same building. The Senate has several advice and consent powers not granted to the Chamber of Deputies, including consenting to
treaties A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention ...
,
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s and
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s as a precondition to their
ratification Ratification is a principal's legal confirmation of an act of its agent. In international law, ratification is the process by which a state declares its consent to be bound to a treaty. In the case of bilateral treaties, ratification is usuall ...
and consenting to or confirming appointments the members of Chamber of Accounts, Central Electoral Board and ambassadors. The Senate is widely considered both a more deliberative and more prestigious body than the Chamber of Deputies. Due to its smaller size and statewide constituencies, the Senate has historically had a more collegial and less partisan atmosphere.


Membership


Qualifications

The constitution of the Dominican Republic states that to be a senator, one must be a Dominican in full exercise of civil and political rights, have attained twenty-five years old, and be a native of the territorial demarcation that choose or have resided there for at least five consecutive years. In consequence: * The senators must reside in the territorial demarcation from which they are elected during their elected terms of office; * Naturalized persons may be elected to the Senate ten years after having acquired Dominican nationality, provided they have resided in the territorial demarcation (jurisdiction) from which they seek election for a period of at least five years prior to their election.


Election and Terms

The members of the Senate in Dominican Republic are elected by the
D'Hondt method The D'Hondt method, also called the Jefferson method or the greatest divisors method, is an apportionment method for allocating seats in parliaments among federal states, or in proportional representation among political parties. It belongs to ...
in relationship with the deputies. The terms for serving as senator are unlimited, one term corresponds to four years.


Oath

The internal rules of procedure of the Senate requires that senators take an oath or affirmation to support the Constitution. Congress has prescribed the following oath for all senators: The oath to be provided is: ''"I SWEAR TO GOD, THE HOMELAND AND MY HONOR, RESPECT CONSTITUTION AND LAWS AND COMPLY WITH DIGNITY AND THE FAITHFULLY OTHER DUTIES OF MY OFFICE",'' what will be answered as follows: ''"IF I DO SO, GOD AND THE PEOPLE WHAT OS REWARD IF I NOT, THAT I DEMAND IT. "''


Majority and minority parties

The "Majority party" is the
political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...
that either has a majority of seats or can form a coalition or caucus with a majority of seats; if two or more parties are tied, the vice president's affiliation determines which party is the majority party. The next-largest party is known as the minority party.


Seating

The majority party or the party with more senators traditionally sits to the presiding officer's right, and the minority party or the party with less senator traditionally sits to the presiding officer's left, regardless which party has a majority of seats.


Functions and Powers

The exclusive powers of the Senate are: # Know the allegations made by the Chamber of Deputies against and public officials. The plea leaves the person removed from office, and may not perform any public function, whether or not popularly elected for a term of ten years. The destitute person shall be subject, if any, to be charged and tried by the ordinary courts, in accordance with the law. This decision shall be taken by a vote of two-thirds of enrollment; # To approve or disapprove the appointment of ambassadors and heads of permanent missions accredited abroad to submit to the President of the Republic; # To elect the members of the Chamber of Accounts of the lists presented by the Chamber of Deputies, with the vote of two thirds of the senators present; # To elect the members of the Central Electoral Board and their deputies, with the vote of two thirds of those present; # Choose the Ombudsman, their deputies and their deputies from the triads to submit to the House of Representatives, by a vote of two-thirds of those present; # To authorize, upon request of the President of the Republic, in the absence of agreement permitted, the presence of foreign troops in military exercises in the territory of the Republic, as well as determine the time and conditions of their stay; # To approve or disapprove of sending troops abroad in peacekeeping missions authorized by international organizations, setting the conditions and duration of the mission.


Current composition (2024-2028)

Senators elected in the May 19, 2024 elections.


Composition (2020-2024)

Senators elected in the July 2020 elections. This list contains the changes that occurred after the election until 1 May 2021.


Composition (2016-2020)

Senators elected in the May 2016 elections.


Party strengths in the Senate

The following table shows the composition of the Senate at the ''start'' of the most recent legislative periods.


See also

* Politics of the Dominican Republic *
List of political parties in the Dominican Republic This article lists political party, political parties in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic has a multi-party system, with two or three strong parties and a third party that is electorally successful. Parties Major parties The M ...
* List of presidents of the Senate of the Dominican Republic


References


External links


Senate of the Dominican RepublicSenate of the Dominican Republic (Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Senate Of The Dominican Republic Government of the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...
1844 establishments in the Dominican Republic 1908 establishments in the Dominican Republic