National Assembly of Kuwait - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The National Assembly of Kuwait, known as the Majlis Al-Umma ("House of the Nation") , is the legislature

Legislature

A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...

of Kuwait

Kuwait

The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...

. The current speaker of the Assembly is Jassem Al-Kharafi

Jassem Al-Kharafi

Jassem Al-Kharafi, , born in 1940, has been speaker of the Kuwaiti National Assembly since 1999. Al-Kharafi studied Business Administration at the Manchester Trade Faculty in Kuwait and was director of M. A. Kharafi & Sons before being elected to the National Assembly in 1975. He affiliates with...

. The Emir

Emir

Emir , meaning "commander", "general", or "prince"; also transliterated as Amir, Aamir or Ameer) is a title of high office, used throughout the Muslim world...

unconstitutionally dissolved the National Assembly in 1986 and restored it after the Gulf War

Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

in 1992. The Emir has also constitutionally dissolved the Assembly several times—meaning that he dissolved it but allowed for elections immediately afterward.

Until recently, suffrage was limited to male Kuwaiti citizens above the age of 21 whose ancestors had resided in Kuwait since 1920, and adult males who have been naturalized citizens for at least 20 years. On May 16, 2005, however, the Assembly passed a law in support of women's suffrage

Kuwaiti female suffrage

On May 17, 2005, the Kuwaiti parliament granted female suffrage. The bill, which passed with 35 votes for and 23 against, allowed women to vote for the first time and run in parliamentary and local elections....

, allowing women to vote and run for office.
The fifty-seat assembly is elected every four years. Currently there are five geographically distributed electoral districts. Every eligible citizen is entitled to four votes, though one may choose to only cast one vote. The ten candidates with the most votes in each district win seats. Cabinet ministers (including the prime minister) are granted automatic membership in the Assembly, which increases the number of members in the assembly from fifty to sixty-six. 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.

Building

The parliament building was designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon

Jørn Utzon

Jørn Oberg Utzon, , AC was a Danish architect, most notable for designing the Sydney Opera House in Australia. When it was declared a World Heritage Site on 28 June 2007, Utzon became only the second person to have received such recognition for one of his works during his lifetime...

, who also designed the Sydney Opera House

Sydney Opera House

The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...

Dissolutions

The Emir of Kuwait has the power to dissolve

Dissolution of parliament

In parliamentary systems, a dissolution of parliament is the dispersal of a legislature at the call of an election.Usually there is a maximum length of a legislature, and a dissolution must happen before the maximum time...

the assembly and call for new elections within two months. The Emir has done so on five separate occasions. On two of those, the assembly was dissolved unconstitutionally, since no new elections were held within the legally required period, and the Emir of Kuwait then ruled by decree

Rule by decree

Rule by decree is a style of governance allowing quick, unchallenged creation of law by a single person or group, and is used primarily by dictators and absolute monarchs, although philosophers such as Giorgio Agamben have argued that it has been generalized since World War I in all modern states,...

. The first case was from 1976 until 1981, and the second one from 1986 until 1992.
On three other occasions, the Emir dissolved the Assembly and held new elections immediately afterward. This happened in 1999, in 2006, and most recently in March 2009. The 2006 dissolution was brought by what is locally known as the Kuwaiti Orange Movement, when Kuwaitis held mass protests and demonstrations to demand that electoral districts be reduced in number from twenty-five to five.

List of members

District	Name	Affiliation	Religion	Prior experience	Education	Assumed office	Born in	Tribe
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Abdullah Al-Roumi Abdullah Al-Roumi Abdullah Al-Roumi is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly from the first district. Born in 1949, Al-Roumi worked as a lawyer before being elected to the National Assembly in 1985. Al-Roumi is considered an independent, liberal-leaning member...	Independent (Liberal-leaning)	Sunni	Lawyer	Law Law Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...	1985	1949
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Adnan Zahid Abdulsamad Adnan Zahid Abdulsamad Adnan Zahid Abdulsamad is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the first district. Born in 1950, Abdulsamad studied political science and worked in the Oil Ministry before being elected to the National Assembly in 1981...	National Islamic Alliance National Islamic Alliance (Kuwait) The National Islamic Alliance is a hard-line Shia political party in Kuwait. It is alleged to have links with Iran and Hezbollah which it denies. Of the fifty elected members of Kuwait National Assembly, two belong to the National Islamic Alliance: Adnan Zahid Abdulsamad and Ahmed Lari....	Shia	Oil Ministry	Political Science Political science Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...	1981	1950
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Faisal Duwaisan	Shia (Unaffiliated)	Shia	High School Diploma		2009	1964
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Hassan Jawhar Hassan Jawhar Hassan Jawhar is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the first district.Dr. Jawar obtained at PhD in political science from Florida State University and worked as a professor at Kuwait University before being elected to the National Assembly in 1996...	Shia (Unaffiliated)	Shia	Professor at Kuwait University Kuwait University Kuwait University was established in October 1966, five years after Kuwait's independence from British Colonization. KU started with only two faculties, namely the Faculty of Science, Arts and Education; and a Women's College. The university had 418 students enrolled and 31 faculty members. By ,...	PhD in Political Science Political science Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...	1996	1960
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Hussein AlـQallaf Al-Bahraini	Shia (Unaffiliated)	Shia		Sharia Sharia Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...	1996	1958
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Hussein Nasser Al-Huraiti	Independent (close to government)	Sunni	Judge, Lawyer	Law Law Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...	2006	1962	Al-Awazem Al-Awazem Tribe Alawazmal-awazem is a large Sunni tribe of the Arabian Peninsula.The Awazem is an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. The tribe has an especially strong base in the first electoral district , where it forms about 14% of the voters, and the fifth electoral district , where it accounts for...
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Masuma Al-Mubarak	Liberal, Shia (Unaffiliated)	Shia	Professor, Kuwait University Kuwait University Kuwait University was established in October 1966, five years after Kuwait's independence from British Colonization. KU started with only two faculties, namely the Faculty of Science, Arts and Education; and a Women's College. The university had 418 students enrolled and 31 faculty members. By ,...	Poli Sci PhD, University of Denver	2009	1952
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Mikhled Al-Azmi Mikhled Al-Azmi Mikhled Al-Azmi is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the first district. Born in 1961, Al-Azmi studied geography and worked in the Municipal Council before being elected to the National Assembly in 1996. While political parties are technically illegal in Kuwait, Al-Azmi...	Islamist (Salafi Salafi A Salafi come from Sunni Islam is a follower of an Islamic movement, Salafiyyah, that is supposed to take the Salaf who lived during the patristic period of early Islam as model examples... )	Sunni	Municipal Council	Geography Geography Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...	1996	1961	Al-Awazem Al-Awazem Tribe Alawazmal-awazem is a large Sunni tribe of the Arabian Peninsula.The Awazem is an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. The tribe has an especially strong base in the first electoral district , where it forms about 14% of the voters, and the fifth electoral district , where it accounts for...
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Saleh Ashour Saleh Ashour Saleh Ashour is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the first district. Born in 1952, Ashour studied economics and served in the Kuwaiti Air Force before being elected to the National Assembly in 1999...	Justice and Peace Alliance Justice and Peace Alliance (Kuwait) The Justice and Peace Alliance is a moderate Shia political bloc in Kuwait. Of the fifty elected members of Kuwait National Assembly, only one belongs to the Justice and Peace Alliance: Saleh Ashour....	Shia	Kuwait Air Force Kuwait Air Force The Kuwait Air Force is the air arm of the State of Kuwait. The Air Force headquarters is located at Al Mubarak Air Base, with the remaining forces stationed at Air Defence Brigade, Ali Al Salem Air Base and Ahmed Al Jaber Air Base...	Economics Economics Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...	1999	1952
First Kuwait's First District Kuwait's first district comprises nineteen residential areas starting from Sharq and Dasma, passing through Salmiya and Rumeithiya and including Bayan, Meshrif and Hawally among others. It has a total of 66,641 voters of whom 36,571 are women and 30,070 are male...	Yusif Al-Zalzala	Shia (Unaffiliated)	Shia	Dean, Kuwait University Kuwait University Kuwait University was established in October 1966, five years after Kuwait's independence from British Colonization. KU started with only two faculties, namely the Faculty of Science, Arts and Education; and a Women's College. The university had 418 students enrolled and 31 faculty members. By ,...	PhD in Statistics, Colorado State University	2003	1959
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Abdul Rahman Al-Anjari	Liberal	Sunni		BA, Business Administration	2009	1957	Banu Tamim Banu Tamim Banī Tamīm Tamim is one of the largest of all Arab tribes. Their history goes back to pre-Islamic times....
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Adnan Al-Mutawa	Shia (Unaffiliated)	Shia		Engineering	2009	1954
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Ali Al-Rashid Ali Al-Rashid Ali Al-Rashid is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the second district. Born in 1967, Al-Rashid worked as a lawyer before being elected to the National Assembly in 2003...	National Democratic Alliance National Democratic Alliance (Kuwait) The National Democratic Alliance is a liberal political bloc in Kuwait. Of the fifty elected members of Kuwait National Assembly, two belong to the NDA: Mohammed Al-Abduljader and Mohammed Al-Sager...	Sunni	Lawyer	JD, International Arab University	2003	1967
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Jamaan Al-Harbash Jamaan Al-Harbash Jamaan Al-Harbash is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the second district. Born in 1970, Dr. Al-Harbash obtained a PhD in Islamic ideology and worked as a professor at Kuwait University before being elected to the National Assembly in 2006...	Hadas Hadas Hadas Hadas was established on 31 March 1991 following the liberation of Kuwait from the Iraqi invasion in the Gulf War. The group of people that started the Movement and still control it are Kuwaiti Islamists following the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood, most notably is Jassem Mohalhel.The...	Sunni	Professor	PhD in Islamic Ideology	2006	1970
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Jassem Al-Kharafi Jassem Al-Kharafi Jassem Al-Kharafi, , born in 1940, has been speaker of the Kuwaiti National Assembly since 1999. Al-Kharafi studied Business Administration at the Manchester Trade Faculty in Kuwait and was director of M. A. Kharafi & Sons before being elected to the National Assembly in 1975. He affiliates with...	Independent (businessman/liberal)	Sunni	Director of Al-Kharafi Group	Business Administration, Manchester Trade Faculty	1975	1940
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Khalaf Dmaithir	Conservative	Sunni			2009	1946	Al-Enezi Al-Enezi The Enezi are an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. Al-Enezi have about 8,347 voters in the fourth electoral district, which is where they have their strongest base. Only one of the fifty elected parliamentarians in the Kuwait National Assembly belongs to the Enezi tribe: Khalaf Al-Enezi....
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Khaled AlـSultan Bin Essa	Islamic Salafi Alliance Islamic Salafi Alliance (Kuwait) The Islamic Salafi Alliance is a Sunni political party in Kuwait headed by Khaled AlـSultan Bin Essa. An affiliate of the Heritage Revival Society, the Alliance opposes women's empowerment. One of the main objectives of the Islamic Salafi Alliance is to enforce Sharia law in the country. It...	Sunni	Chairman of Kuwait Graduates Society		2008	1940
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Marzouq Al-Ghanim Marzouq Al-Ghanim Marzouq Al-Ghanim is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the second district. Born in 1968, Al-Ghanim earned a BA in mechanical engineering and worked for Boubyan Petrochemicals before being elected to the National Assembly in 2006...	Independent (businessman/liberal-leaning)	Sunni	Petrochemicals	Mechanical Engineering Mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...	2008	1968
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Mohammed AlـMutair	Islamist (businessman/Salafi Salafi A Salafi come from Sunni Islam is a follower of an Islamic movement, Salafiyyah, that is supposed to take the Salaf who lived during the patristic period of early Islam as model examples... )	Sunni	Investment Company	Business Business A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...	2003	1969
Second Kuwait's Second District Kuwait's second district consists of 13 residential areas starting from the main suburban districts of Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem, Shammiya and Shuwaikh to the tribal areas of Sulaibkhat and Doha. It also includes Qadsia, Mansouriya, Faiha and Nuzha. It has the lowest number of voters among the five...	Salwa al-Jassar Salwa al-Jassar Doctor Salwa al-Jassar was one of four women elected to the National Assembly of Kuwait in the 2009 legislative election. al-Jassar is the Chief of Center for Empowering Women and ran as an independent candidate...	Conservative	Sunni	Professor of Education, Kuwait University Kuwait University Kuwait University was established in October 1966, five years after Kuwait's independence from British Colonization. KU started with only two faculties, namely the Faculty of Science, Arts and Education; and a Women's College. The university had 418 students enrolled and 31 faculty members. By ,...	MA and PhD in Education, University of Michigan	2009	1957
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Aseel Al-Awadi	Liberal	Sunni	Municipal Professor, Kuwait University Kuwait University Kuwait University was established in October 1966, five years after Kuwait's independence from British Colonization. KU started with only two faculties, namely the Faculty of Science, Arts and Education; and a Women's College. The university had 418 students enrolled and 31 faculty members. By ,...		2009	1969
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Adel Al-Saraawi Adel Al-Saraawi Adel Al-Saraawi is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the third district. Born in 1962, Al-Saraawi studied accounting before being elected to the National Assembly in 2003. He is considered an Independent deputy, but affiliates with the Islamist members...	Islamist Independent	Sunni	Office for Assessment of Iraq Invasion Damage	Accounting	2003	1962
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Ahmed Al-Sadoun Ahmed Al-Sadoun Ahmed Al-Sadoun was the Speaker of the Kuwaiti National Assembly from 1985 to 1999. He is the leader of the Popular Action Bloc in the Assembly and served for eight terms.He represented the third district...	Popular Action Bloc Popular Action Bloc (Kuwait) The Popular Action Bloc is a political bloc in Kuwait headed by veteran former Speaker Ahmed Al-Sadoun. The group focuses on populist issues like housing and salary raise, and reform...	Sunni		Literature Literature Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...	1975	1934
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Ali Al-Omair Ali Al-Omair Ali Al-Omair is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the third district. Born in 1958, Al-Omair obtained a PhD in chemistry and worked as a professor before being elected to the National Assembly in 2006...	Islamic Salafi Alliance Islamic Salafi Alliance (Kuwait) The Islamic Salafi Alliance is a Sunni political party in Kuwait headed by Khaled AlـSultan Bin Essa. An affiliate of the Heritage Revival Society, the Alliance opposes women's empowerment. One of the main objectives of the Islamic Salafi Alliance is to enforce Sharia law in the country. It...	Sunni	Professor	PhD in Chemistry Chemistry Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....	2006	1958
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Faisal Al-Muslim Al-Otaib Faisal Al-Muslim Al-Otaib Faisal Al-Meslim is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the third district. Born in 1962, Al-Meslim studied Political History at the University of Wales and worked as a professor before being elected to the National Assembly in 2003. Al-Otaib is considered an Independent deputy...	Islamist (Independent)	Sunni	Professor	MA in Political History, University of Wales University of Wales The University of Wales was a confederal university founded in 1893. It had accredited institutions throughout Wales, and formerly accredited courses in Britain and abroad, with over 100,000 students, but in October 2011, after a number of scandals, it withdrew all accreditation, and it was...	2003	1962	Al-Otaibi Al-Otaibi The Otaibi is an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. It has its strongest base at the fifth electoral district where it forms seven percent of the voters. Two of the fifty elected parliamentarians in the Kuwait National Assembly belong to the Otaibi tribe: Faisal Al-Muslim Al-Otaib and Sadoon...
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Naji Abdalhadi	Independent	Sunni		Engineer	1992	1955
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Rola Dashti Rola Dashti Rola Dashti is a Kuwaiti activist advocating democratic reform, gender equality and increased roles for women in public life. Dashti lobbied for the May 2005 decree permitting Kuwaiti women to vote and run for parliamentary elections for the first time...	Liberal, Shia (unaffiliated)	Shia		PhD in Population Economics, Johns Hopkins	2009	1964
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Roudhan Al-Roudhan Roudhan Al-Roudhan Roudhan Al-Roudhan is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the third district. Born in 1965, Al-Roudhan worked in the Municipal Council before being elected to the National Assembly in 2008...	Conservative	Sunni		Diploma of Institute of Applied Sciences and Tech	2009	1961
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Saleh Al-Mulla Saleh Al-Mulla Saleh Al-Mulla representing the third district. Born in 1971, Al-Mulla studied Business at Kuwait University and worked as a diplomat before being elected to the National Assembly in 2008...	Liberal Liberalism Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...	Sunni	Diplomat	BA in Business, Kuwait University Kuwait University Kuwait University was established in October 1966, five years after Kuwait's independence from British Colonization. KU started with only two faculties, namely the Faculty of Science, Arts and Education; and a Women's College. The university had 418 students enrolled and 31 faculty members. By ,...	2008	1971
Third Kuwait's Third District Kuwait's third district consists of 15 residential areas with a mixture of Islamist, liberal, tribal and Shiite voter base. It includes the Salafist base of Keifan, the Islamic Constitutional Movement stronghold of Rawdah, the relatively liberal areas of Udailiya and Khaldiya, the tribal area of...	Waleed AlـTabtabaie	Islamist (Salafi Salafi A Salafi come from Sunni Islam is a follower of an Islamic movement, Salafiyyah, that is supposed to take the Salaf who lived during the patristic period of early Islam as model examples... )	Sunni	Professor, Kuwait University Kuwait University Kuwait University was established in October 1966, five years after Kuwait's independence from British Colonization. KU started with only two faculties, namely the Faculty of Science, Arts and Education; and a Women's College. The university had 418 students enrolled and 31 faculty members. By ,...	PhD in Islamic Studies, Al-Azhar	1996	1964
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Ali Al-Daqbaashi Ali Al-Daqbaashi Ali Al-Daqbaashi is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the fourth district. Born in 1965, Al-Daqbaashi studied management before being elected to the National Assembly in 2003. While political parties are technically illegal in Kuwait, Al-Daqbaashi affiliates with the Islamist...	Islamist (close to government)	Sunni		Management Management Management in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...	2003	1965	Al-Rashaydah
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Askar Al-Enezi Askar Al-Enezi Askar Al-Enezi is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the fourth district. He was elected to the National Assembly in 2008. The tenth representative from the fifth district was originally Mubarak Al-Mutairi. However, on September 22, 2008, following a vote recount, the...		Sunni			2008		Al-Enezi Al-Enezi The Enezi are an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. Al-Enezi have about 8,347 voters in the fourth electoral district, which is where they have their strongest base. Only one of the fifty elected parliamentarians in the Kuwait National Assembly belongs to the Enezi tribe: Khalaf Al-Enezi....
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Daifallah Bouramiya Daifallah Bouramiya Daifallah Bouramiya is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the fourth district. Born in 1957, Bouramiya studied public health and worked in as a doctor before being elected to the National Assembly in 2003. He is an independent Islamist deputy and a member of the Mutairi tribe...	Islamist (Independent)	Sunni	Doctor	MA in Public Health	2003	1957	Al-Mutairi Al-Mutairi The Al-Mutairi is a powerful tribe in Kuwaiti politics. It has its strongest base in the fourth district and fifth electoral districts, with an estimated 16,000 to 17,000 voters. Of the current fifty elected members of the Kuwait National Assembly, six belong to the Al-Mutairi tribe...
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Hussein Mazyid Al-Mutairi		Sunni			2009	1955	Al-Mutairi Al-Mutairi The Al-Mutairi is a powerful tribe in Kuwaiti politics. It has its strongest base in the fourth district and fifth electoral districts, with an estimated 16,000 to 17,000 voters. Of the current fifty elected members of the Kuwait National Assembly, six belong to the Al-Mutairi tribe...
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Mohammed Hayef AlـMutairi	Islamist (Salafi Salafi A Salafi come from Sunni Islam is a follower of an Islamic movement, Salafiyyah, that is supposed to take the Salaf who lived during the patristic period of early Islam as model examples... )	Sunni	Kuwait Municipality	Islamic Studies Islamic studies In a Muslim context, Islamic studies can be an umbrella term for all virtually all of academia, both originally researched and as defined by the Islamization of knowledge...	2008	1964	Al-Mutairi Al-Mutairi The Al-Mutairi is a powerful tribe in Kuwaiti politics. It has its strongest base in the fourth district and fifth electoral districts, with an estimated 16,000 to 17,000 voters. Of the current fifty elected members of the Kuwait National Assembly, six belong to the Al-Mutairi tribe...
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Mubarak Al-Khirinj	Independent	Sunni			2009	1948	Al-Rashaydah
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Mubarak Al-Waalan	Conservative	Sunni		Political Science	2009	1959	Al-Mutairi Al-Mutairi The Al-Mutairi is a powerful tribe in Kuwaiti politics. It has its strongest base in the fourth district and fifth electoral districts, with an estimated 16,000 to 17,000 voters. Of the current fifty elected members of the Kuwait National Assembly, six belong to the Al-Mutairi tribe...
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Musallam AlـBarrak	Popular Action Bloc Popular Action Bloc (Kuwait) The Popular Action Bloc is a political bloc in Kuwait headed by veteran former Speaker Ahmed Al-Sadoun. The group focuses on populist issues like housing and salary raise, and reform...	Sunni	Municipal Council	Arabic literature Arabic literature Arabic literature is the writing produced, both prose and poetry, by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for literature is adab which is derived from a meaning of etiquette, and implies politeness, culture and enrichment....	1996	1956	Al-Mutairi Al-Mutairi The Al-Mutairi is a powerful tribe in Kuwaiti politics. It has its strongest base in the fourth district and fifth electoral districts, with an estimated 16,000 to 17,000 voters. Of the current fifty elected members of the Kuwait National Assembly, six belong to the Al-Mutairi tribe...
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Saad AlـKhanfour Al-Rasheedi	Independent	Sunni	Interior Ministry		2008	1965	Al-Rashaydah
Fourth Kuwait's Fourth District Kuwait's fourth district consists of 18 large residential areas extending from Farwaniya to Jahra. Other major residential areas include Ardhiya, Sabah Al-Nasser, Firdous, Omariya, Rabiya, Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Andalus...	Shuaib Al-Muaizri	Conservative	Sunni	Police		2009	1959	Al-Mutairi Al-Mutairi The Al-Mutairi is a powerful tribe in Kuwaiti politics. It has its strongest base in the fourth district and fifth electoral districts, with an estimated 16,000 to 17,000 voters. Of the current fifty elected members of the Kuwait National Assembly, six belong to the Al-Mutairi tribe...
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Alsaifi Al-Ajmi	Independent	Sunni			2009	1961	Al-Ajman Ajman (tribe) Al-'Ajman or al-'Ijman are a bedouin tribe of northeastern Arabia, with members spread across Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, and the U.A.E.....
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Badi Al-Dusari	Independent	Sunni		PhD, Sports Administration	2009	1963	Al-Dosari
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Dlaihi Al-Hajiri	Independent	Sunni		High School diploma	2009	1958	Al-Hajiri
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Falah Al-Azmi	Independent	Sunni		High School diploma	2008	1961	Al-Awazem Al-Awazem Tribe Alawazmal-awazem is a large Sunni tribe of the Arabian Peninsula.The Awazem is an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. The tribe has an especially strong base in the first electoral district , where it forms about 14% of the voters, and the fifth electoral district , where it accounts for...
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Ghanem Al-Mai	Independent	Sunni	Ministry of Education	Literature	2003	1958	Al-Awazem Al-Awazem Tribe Alawazmal-awazem is a large Sunni tribe of the Arabian Peninsula.The Awazem is an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. The tribe has an especially strong base in the first electoral district , where it forms about 14% of the voters, and the fifth electoral district , where it accounts for...
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Khalid Al-Tahus	Independent	Sunni		Engineering	2009	1974	Al-Ajman Ajman (tribe) Al-'Ajman or al-'Ijman are a bedouin tribe of northeastern Arabia, with members spread across Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, and the U.A.E.....
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Mohammed AlـHuwaila Al-Ajmi	Independent	Sunni	Professor	PhD in Management, Yarmouk University Yarmouk University Yarmouk University is a university in Jordan. It was established in 1976. Located in the northern town of Irbid, it has a student body of roughly 31,000.The university has several international partnerships with overseas universities...	2008	1971	Al-Ajman Ajman (tribe) Al-'Ajman or al-'Ijman are a bedouin tribe of northeastern Arabia, with members spread across Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, and the U.A.E.....
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Saad Znaifir Al-Azmi	Independent	Sunni		Middle School	2009	1950	Al-Awazem Al-Awazem Tribe Alawazmal-awazem is a large Sunni tribe of the Arabian Peninsula.The Awazem is an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. The tribe has an especially strong base in the first electoral district , where it forms about 14% of the voters, and the fifth electoral district , where it accounts for...
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Sadoon Al-Otaibi Sadoon Al-Otaibi Sadoon Al-Otaibi is a member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, representing the fifth district. Elected to the National Assembly in 2008, Al-Otaibi is an Independent deputy. He is a member of the Al-Otaibi tribe.-Recount:...	Independent	Sunni			2008	1959	Al-Otaibi Al-Otaibi The Otaibi is an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. It has its strongest base at the fifth electoral district where it forms seven percent of the voters. Two of the fifty elected parliamentarians in the Kuwait National Assembly belong to the Otaibi tribe: Faisal Al-Muslim Al-Otaib and Sadoon...
Fifth Kuwait's Fifth District Kuwait's fifth district is the country's largest electoral district in terms of the number of voters and number of residential areas. It consists of 20 residential areas including Fahaheel, Ahmadi, Sabahiya, Rigga and the district extends down south to Wafra and Al-Zour on the border with Saudi...	Salim Al-Azmi		Sunni		MA, Law	2009	1967	Al-Awazem Al-Awazem Tribe Alawazmal-awazem is a large Sunni tribe of the Arabian Peninsula.The Awazem is an influential tribe in Kuwaiti politics. The tribe has an especially strong base in the first electoral district , where it forms about 14% of the voters, and the fifth electoral district , where it accounts for...

Sources: Kuwait Politics Database, 2008 Election Results

Political factions

While political parties are not legally recognized in Kuwait, a number of political factions exist. The assembly is composed of different unofficial political factions in addition to independents:

The Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

ic bloc: Consisting mainly of Salafi
Salafi
A Salafi come from Sunni Islam is a follower of an Islamic movement, Salafiyyah, that is supposed to take the Salaf who lived during the patristic period of early Islam as model examples...

and Hadas
Hadas
Hadas Hadas was established on 31 March 1991 following the liberation of Kuwait from the Iraqi invasion in the Gulf War. The group of people that started the Movement and still control it are Kuwaiti Islamists following the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood, most notably is Jassem Mohalhel.The...

members. The Islamic bloc is the most influential bloc in the assembly with around 21 members elected in the 2008 national elections (17 in the 2006 election), although its loose organization made it less effective. Their chief goal is the complete return of the Shari'a law. Bills supported by the Islamic bloc include the elimination of co-education at the university level (passed in 1998).

The Shaabi (populist
Populism
Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...

) bloc: A coalition of independents and other nationalist parties with a focus on lower- and middle-class issues. In 2006 national elections, they won around 10 seats of the parliament.

The liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...

bloc: With eight members elected in the 2006 elections. The liberal bloc supported the women's suffrage
Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...

bill in 1999 and 2005.

In the 2006 general election, a coalition of 29 candidates who were members of parliament was formed (which was increased to 36 members after the election) aimed to support the 5 electoral districts bill.

Summary of the 16 May 2009 National Assembly of Kuwait election results
|-
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=left valign=top width=400|
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=right|Seats
|-
|align="left"|Independents
|valign="top"|21
|-
|align="left"|Sunni Islamist
|valign="top"|13
|-
|align="left"|Liberals (Shia and Sunni)
|valign="top"|7
|-
|align="left"|Shia Islamist
|valign="top"|6
|-
|align="left"|Popular Bloc
|valign="top"|3
|-
|align=left style="background-color:#E9E9E9"|Total (turnout 50 %)
|width="30" align="right" style="background-color:#E9E9E9"|50
|-
|align=left colspan=2|Source: Kuwait Politics Database
|}

Significant events

June 19, 1961- The Independence of Kuwait.

February 27, 1962- The Preliminary Assembly convened.

November 11, 1962- The Constitution of Kuwait was signed by the Emir, Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah
Abdullah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah
Abdullah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah GCMG, CIE, KStJ was the last Sheikh and first Emir of Kuwait from 29 January 1950 until his death, and the eldest son of Salem Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah. As the eleventh ruler of the al-Sabah dynasty in Kuwait, he took power after the death of his cousin Sheikh Ahmad...

after being passed unanimously in the Assembly.

January 29, 1963- The First constitutionally elected Assembly convened.

February 27, 1967- The second elected Assembly convened, allegedly by forged elections.

August 29, 1976- The first, unconstitutional, dissolution of the Assembly by Sheikh Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah
Sabah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah
Sabah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah, KCMG Emir of Kuwait from 1965 to 1977, and youngest son of Salim Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah. Sabah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah succeeded his half-brother Abdullah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah upon his death on November 24, 1965. He was the 12th ruler of the Al-Sabah dynasty of Kuwait,...

.

July 3, 1981- The second, unconstitutional, dissolution of the Assembly by Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
Jaber III al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, GCB , GCMG of the al-Sabah dynasty, was the Emir and thirteenth Sheikh of Kuwait, serving from December 31, 1977 until his death on January 15, 2006...

.

May 4, 1999- Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
Jaber III al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, GCB , GCMG of the al-Sabah dynasty, was the Emir and thirteenth Sheikh of Kuwait, serving from December 31, 1977 until his death on January 15, 2006...

dissolved the National Assembly on the grounds of a political deadlock between the Government and the Assembly. This time he called for elections within the constitutional period of two months.

November 23, 1999- The National Assembly rejects an amiri decree by Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to grant women's suffrage in the next elections.

May 16, 2005- The National Assembly passes women's suffrage law after several attempts since the amiri decree of 1999.

January 24, 2006- The National Assembly of Kuwait voted http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/01/24/kuwait/ ruling emir Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah
Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah
Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah, KCMG was the Emir of Kuwait during a short reign of nine days , succeeding the late Sheikh Jaber....

out of office just moments before a letter of abdication was received from the emir. The Kuwait Cabinet nominated Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
Sheikh Sabah IV Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is the Emir of Kuwait. Sheikh Sabah was sworn in on January 29, 2006 after confirmation by the National Assembly of Kuwait. He is the fourth son of Emir Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. Sheikh Sabah is the head of the ruling Al-Sabah family...

, prime minister, to take over as emir.

January 29, 2006- Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah was sworn in as the 15th emir of Kuwait, which was unanimously approved by the National Assembly.

May 21, 2006- Amidst week long disputes over reform to decrease the number of electoral districts, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah dissolves the Assembly calling for new elections June 29 of 2006.

March 17, 2008- Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad again dissolves the Assembly due to misuse of parliamentary powers by some members. He called for elections May 17, 2008.

March 18, 2009 - Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad dissolves the Assembly calling for new elections in two months time. This happened immediately following some members' calls to "grill" (see Politics of Kuwait
Politics of Kuwait
The government of Kuwait consists of a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, whereby the Emir is the head of government. The State of Kuwait has been ruled by the al-Sabah dynasty since approximately 1752. The constitution, approved and promulgated on November 11, 1962, calls for direct elections...

for a definition of grilling) the prime minister, after months of "grilling" and political deadlock. The government resigned on March the 17th.

May 16, 2009 - The first women MPs were elected into the National Assembly. 4 women won in the 2009 election; Aseel al-Awadhi, Rola Dashti
Rola Dashti
Rola Dashti is a Kuwaiti activist advocating democratic reform, gender equality and increased roles for women in public life. Dashti lobbied for the May 2005 decree permitting Kuwaiti women to vote and run for parliamentary elections for the first time...

, Massouma al-Mubarak
Massouma al-Mubarak
Massouma al-Mubarak is Kuwait's first female minister, sworn in on June 20, 2005. She was Minister of Planning and Minister of State for Administrative Development. Massouma al-Mubarak was educated in the United States and is a professor of political science....

and Salwa al-Jassar
Salwa al-Jassar
Doctor Salwa al-Jassar was one of four women elected to the National Assembly of Kuwait in the 2009 legislative election. al-Jassar is the Chief of Center for Empowering Women and ran as an independent candidate...

External links