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50 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly | ||||
| Turnout | 69.4% ( 4.2pp) | |||
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General elections were held in Kuwait on 5 December 2020. Two-thirds of the incumbents lost their seats, including the 2016 parliament's sole woman MP Safa Al Hashem.
Background
Registration of candidates contesting for the 50 seats of the National Assembly took place between 26 October and 4 November 2020. 102 schools were used for the 2020 National Assembly elections on December 5. Each school had a clinic set up to check on the health condition of all those entering.
Electoral system
The 50 elected members of the National Assembly are elected from five 10-seat constituencies by single non-transferable vote. Political parties are not officially licensed, therefore candidates run as individuals, although many political groups operate freely as de facto political parties. All Kuwaiti citizens (both male and female) above the age of 21 have the right to vote. Expatriate workers, who constituted 70% of the population, were not enfranchised.
Results
Overall, opposition candidates won 24 seats, up from 16 in the previous parliament. The election was seen as a victory for the anti-government opposition bloc. Thirty of the elected candidates were under the age of 45; whilst there were 29 female candidates, none were elected, leaving the parliament without a female MP for the first time since the year 2012. There was a total of 567,694 registered voters, of which 394,131 cast a valid vote.
Aftermath
Following the elections, a new Speaker of the National Assembly was elected on 15 December. Incumbent Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim was re-elected with 33 votes, defeating Bader Nasser Al-Humaidi, who received 28. Four members did not vote.
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marzouq Al-Ghanim | Independent | 33 | 54.10 | |
| Bader Al Humaidi | Independent | 28 | 45.90 | |
| Total | 61 | 100.00 | ||
| Valid votes | 61 | 95.31 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 3 | 4.69 | ||
| Total votes | 64 | 100.00 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 65 | 98.46 | ||
Parliament unanimously approved a motion of noncooperation, meaning the cabinet must be replaced.
References
- @CGCKuwait (19 October 2020). "وافق مجلس الوزراء على مشروع مرسوم بدعوة الناخبين لانتخابات مجلس الأمة للفصل التشريعي السادس عشر وذلك يوم السبت الموافق ٥ ديسمبر ٢٠٢٠" (Tweet) (in Arabic) – via Twitter.
- "Decree sets Dec 5 general elections". Arab Times. 19 October 2020.
- "Kuwait sets parliamentary elections for December 5". Kuwait Times. 19 October 2020.
- "Kuwait election sees two-thirds of parliament lose seats". yahoo.com. AP. 5 December 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
- @CGCKuwait (24 October 2020). "يفتح باب الترشيح لانتخاب أعضاء مجلس الأمة اعتباراً من صباح يوم الاثنين الموافق 26/10/2020 ويستمر حتى نهاية الدوام الرسمي ليوم الاربعاء الموافق 4/11/2020 #CGCKuwait" (Tweet) (in Arabic) – via Twitter.
- "Registration for Assembly polls opens on Oct 26". Kuwait Times. 24 October 2020.
- "102 Schools for 2020 Polls". Arab Times. 21 October 2020.
- "Kuwait PM: Health precautions must be respected at electoral locations". Kuwait News Agency KUNA. 25 October 2020.
- Electoral system Inter-Parliamentary Union
- ^ "Kuwait polls: Opposition makes gains, gov't resignation accepted". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2020-12-21.
- Emirate of Kuwait: Legislative elections of 5 December 2020 Psephos
- "Kuwait's minority government bows out after a month". The Jerusalem Post | Jpost.com.
 Elections in Kuwait | |
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