2016 Kuwaiti general election
Early general elections were held in Kuwait on 26 November 2016. They follow the dissolution of the parliament elected in 2013 by Emir Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in October 2016.[1] Under the constitution, elections must be held within two months.[2] Opposition candidates won 24 of the 50 seats in the National Assembly.[3] Voter turnout was around 70 percent.[3]
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50 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly | ||
| Turnout | 65.2% ( 13.3pp) | |
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| Constitution |
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Kuwait portal |
Electoral system
The 50 elected members of the National Assembly were elected from five 10-seat constituencies by single non-transferable vote.[4]
Results
Opposition Islamist candidates (Muslim Brotherhood and Salafi) won around half of the 24 seats won by the opposition, whilst the Shia minority was reduced to six seats from ten seats.[5][6] One woman was elected, with only around 20 of the 42 MPs seeking re-election retaining their seats.[7] Members of Kuwait's largest tribes together won just seven seats in the election, down from fifteen.[8]
| Constituency | Candidate | Votes | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Constituency | Adnan Zahid Abdulsamad | 4,287 | Elected |
| Essa Ahmad Al-Kanderi | 4,077 | Elected | |
| Mohammad Mirwi Al-Hadiyah | 3,016 | Elected | |
| Adel Jassem Al-Damkhi | 2,758 | Elected | |
| Abdullah Al-Roumi | 2,731 | Elected | |
| Saleh Ashour | 2,541 | Elected | |
| Mubarak Salem Al-Harees | 2,444 | Elected | |
| Osama Essa Al-Shaheen | 2,270 | Elected | |
| Khaled Hussein Al-Shatti | 2,166 | Elected | |
| Salah Abduredha Khourshid | 2,131 | Elected | |
| Second Constituency | Marzouq Al-Ghanim | 4,119 | Elected |
| Riyadh Ahmad Al-Adsani | 3,578 | Elected | |
| Khalil Ibrahim Al-Saleh | 2,914 | Elected | |
| Jamaan Thaher Al-Herbish | 2,432 | Elected | |
| Hamad Seif Al-Harshani | 2,341 | Elected | |
| Mohammed Al-Mutair | 2,172 | Elected | |
| Khalaf Dumaitheer Al-Enizi | 1,942 | Elected | |
| Rakan Al-Nisf | 1,888 | Elected | |
| Oudah Oudah Al-Ruwaiee | 1,772 | Elected | |
| Omar Al-Tabtabaee | 1,755 | Elected | |
| Third Constituency | Abdulwahab Al-Babtain | 3,730 | Elected |
| Sadoon Al-Otaibi | 3,444 | Elected | |
| Youssef Saleh Al-Fedhalah | 3,399 | Elected | |
| Abdulkarim Al-Kanderi | 3,325 | Elected | |
| Safaa Abdurrahman Al-Hashim | 3,273 | Elected | |
| Mohammad Hussein Al-Dalaal | 2,533 | Elected | |
| Waleed Al-Tabtabaie | 2,504 | Elected | |
| Khalil Abdullah Abul | 2,443 | Elected | |
| Mohammad Nasser Al-Jabri | 2,219 | Elected | |
| Ahmad Nabil Al-Fadhel | 2,124 | Elected | |
| Fourth Constituency | Thamer Saad Al-Thifeeri | 5,601 | Elected |
| Mubarak Haif Al-Hajraf | 4,621 | Elected | |
| Mohammed Hayef Al-Mutairi | 4,506 | Elected | |
| Saad Ali Al-Rusheedi | 3,811 | Elected | |
| Abdullah Fahad Al-Enizi | 3,545 | Elected | |
| Shueib Shabab Al-Muweizri | 3,528 | Elected | |
| Ali Salem Al-Deqbasi | 3,379 | Elected | |
| Askar Auwayed Al-Enizi | 2,972 | Elected | |
| Saud Mohammad Al-Shuwaier | 2,897 | Elected | |
| Marzouq Khalifa Al-Khalifa | 2,874 | Elected | |
| Fifth Constituency | Humoud Abdullah Al-Khudeir | 5,072 | Elected |
| Hamdan Salem Al-Azmi | 5,038 | Elected | |
| Al-Humaidi Bader Al-Subaiee | 4,660 | Elected | |
| Talal Saad Al-Jalaal | 4,299 | Elected | |
| Faisal Mohammad Al-Kanderi | 4,114 | Elected | |
| Khaled Mohammad Al-Otaibi | 3,998 | Elected | |
| Majed Musaaed Al-Mutairi | 3,821 | Elected | |
| Nayef Abdulaziz Al-Ajmi | 3,769 | Elected | |
| Nasser Saad Al-Doussari | 3,296 | Elected | |
| Mohammad Hadi Al-Huweila | 2,851 | Elected | |
| Source: KUNA (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) | |||
Aftermath
Following the elections, a new Speaker of the National Assembly was elected on 11 December. Marzouq Al-Ghanim was elected with 48 votes, defeating Abdullah Al-Roumi (9 votes) and Shuaib Al-Muwaizri (8 votes).
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marzouq Al-Ghanim | Independent | 48 | 73.85 | |
| Abdullah Al-Roumi | Independent | 9 | 13.85 | |
| Shuaib Al-Muwaizri | Independent | 8 | 12.31 | |
| Total | 65 | 100.00 | ||
| Valid votes | 65 | 100.00 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 0 | 0.00 | ||
| Total votes | 65 | 100.00 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 65 | 100.00 | ||
References
- Kuwait emir dissolves parliament over fuel price row BBC News, 16 October 2016
- Stage set for snap elections after Assembly dissolved – Amir cites ‘security challenges’ in dissolution decree Kuwait Times, 16 October 2016
- Kuwait poll: Opposition wins nearly half of parliament Al Jazeera, 27 November 2016
- Electoral system Inter-Parliamentary Union
- "The Danger to Kuwait is Authoritarianism".
The Shia currently hold 10 out of 50 seats in the National Assembly and have generally served as a bulwark against the opposition since 2008.
- Sectarianism and authoritarianism in Kuwait Washington Times
- Strong showing by opposition, outgoing Assembly punished Kuwait Times, 27 November 2016
- After big election win, what’s next for Kuwait’s opposition? Courtney Freer, Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy, 8 December 2016
| Parliamentary elections | |
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| Municipal elections |
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* Constitutional Convention | |