unicameral Knesset (120 seats; members elected by popular
vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 February 2009 (next scheduled election to be
held in 2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - Kadima 23.2%, Likud-Ahi
22.3%, YB 12.1%, Labor 10.2%, SHAS 8.8%, United Torah Judaism 4.5%,
United Arab List 3.5%, NU 3.4%, Hadash 3.4%, The Jewish Home 3%, The
New Movement-Meretz 3%, Balad 2.6%; seats by party - Kadima 28,
Likud-Ahi 27, YB 15, Labor 13, SHAS 11, United Torah Judaism 5,
United Arab List 4, NU 4, HADASH 4, The Jewish Home 3, The New
Movement-Meretz 3, Balad 3
Italy
bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or
Senato della Repubblica (315 seats; members elected by proportional
vote with the winning coalition in each region receiving 55% of
seats from that region; to serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of
Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; members elected by
popular vote with the winning national coalition receiving 54% of
chamber seats; to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 13-14 April 2008 (next to be held
April 2013); Chamber of Deputies - last held 13-14 April 2008 (next
to be held April 2013)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - S. BERLUSCONI coalition 174 (PdL 147, LN 25, MpA 2), W.
VELTRONI coalition 132 (PD 118, IdV 3), UdC 3, other 6; Chamber of
Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - S.
BERLUSCONI coalition 344 (PdL 276, LN 60, MpA 8), W. VELTRONI
coalition 246 (PD 217, IdV 29), UdC 36, other 4
Jamaica
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member
body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the
prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is
allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated 8 seats) and the
House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular
vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 September 2007 (next to be held no later than
October 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - JLP 50.1%, PNP 49.8%;
seats by party - JLP 33, PNP 27
Japan
bicameral Diet or Kokkai consists of the House of Councillors
or Sangi-in (242 seats - members elected for fixed six-year terms;
half reelected every three years; 146 members in multi-seat
constituencies and 96 by proportional representation) and the House
of Representatives or Shugi-in (480 seats - members elected for
maximum four-year terms; 300 in single-seat constituencies; 180
members by proportional representation in 11 regional blocs); the
prime minister has the right to dissolve the House of
Representatives at any time with the concurrence of the cabinet.
elections: House of Councillors - last held 29 July 2007 (next to be
held in July 2010); House of Representatives - last held 30 August
2009 (next to be held by August 2013)
election results: House of Councillors - percent of vote by party -
NA; seats by party - DPJ 109, LDP 83, Komeito 20, JCP 7, SDP 5,
others 18
House of Representatives - percent of vote by party (in single-seat
constituencies) - DPJ 42.4%, LDP 26.7%, Komeito 11.5%, JCP 7.0%, SDP
4.3%, others 8.1%; seats by party - DPJ 308, LDP 119, Komeito 21,
JCP 9, SDP 7, others 16 (2009)
Jersey
unicameral Assembly of the States of Jersey (58 seats; 55 are
voting members, of which 12 are senators elected for six-year terms,
12 are constables or heads of parishes elected for three-year terms,
29 are deputies elected for three-year terms, the bailiff and the
deputy bailiff, and 3 non-voting members includes the Dean of
Jersey, the Attorney General, and the Solicitor General appointed by
the monarch)
elections: last held 15 October 2008 for senators and 26 November
2008 for deputies (next to be held in 2011)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 55
Jordan
bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of
the Senate, also called the House of Notables or Majlis al-Ayan (55
seats; members appointed by the monarch to serve four-year terms)
and the Chamber of Deputies, also called the House of
Representatives or Majlis al-Nuwaab (110 seats; members elected
using a single, non-transferable vote system in multi-member
districts to serve four-year terms); note - six seats are reserved
for women, nine seats are reserved for Christian candidates, nine
seats are reserved for Bedouin candidates, and three seats are
reserved for Jordanians of Chechen or Circassian descent
elections: Chamber of Deputies - last held 20 November 2007 (next
scheduled to be held in 2011)
election results: Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party -
NA; seats by party - IAF 6, independents and other 104; note - seven
women serve in the Assembly, six of whom filled women's quota seats
and one was directly elected
Kazakhstan
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (47 seats; 15
members are appointed by the president; other members are elected by
local assemblies; members serve six-year terms, but elections are
staggered with half of the members up for re-election every three
years) and the Mazhilis (107 seats; 9 out of the 107 Mazhilis
members are elected by the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan, a
presidentially appointed advisory body designed to represent the
country's ethnic minorities; non-appointed members are popularly
elected to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - (indirect) last held October 2008; next to be
held in 2011; Mazhilis - last held 18 August 2007 (next to be held
in 2012)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - Nur Otan 16; Mazhilis - percent of vote by party - Nur-Otan
88.1%, NSDP 4.6%, Ak Zhol 3.3%, Auyl 1.6%, Communist People's Party
1.3%, Patriots Party .8% Ruhaniyat .4%; seats by party - Nur-Otan
98; note - parties must achieve a threshold of 7% of the electorate
to qualify for seats in the Mazhilis
Kenya
unicameral National Assembly or Bunge usually referred to as
Parliament (224 seats; 210 members elected by popular vote to serve
five-year terms, 12 nominated members who are appointed by the
president but selected by the parties in proportion to their
parliamentary vote totals, 2 ex-officio members)
elections: last held 27 December 2007 (next to be held in December
2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
ODM 99, PNU 46, ODM-K 16, KANU 14 other 35; ex-officio 2; seats
appointed by the president - ODM 6, PNU 3, ODM-K 2, KANU 1
Kiribati
unicameral House of Parliament or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (46
seats; 44 members elected by popular vote, 1 ex officio member - the
attorney general, 1 nominated by the Rabi Council of Leaders
(representing Banaba Island); serve four-year terms)
elections: legislative elections were held in two rounds - the first
round on 22 August 2007 and the second round on 30 August 2007 (next
to be held in 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
NA, other 2 (includes attorney general)
Korea, North
unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin
Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year
terms)
elections: last held 8 March 2009 (next due to be held in March 2014)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
NA; ruling party approves a list of candidates who are elected
without opposition; a token number of seats are reserved for minor
parties
Korea, South
unicameral National Assembly or Kukhoe (299 seats; 243
members elected in single-seat constituencies, 56 elected by
proportional representation; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 9 April 2008 (next to be held in April 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
GNP 172, UDP 83, LFP 20, Pro-Park Alliance 8, DLP 5, CKP 1,
independents 9
Kosovo
unicameral national Assembly (120 seats; 100 seats directly
elected, 10 seats guaranteed for ethnic Serbs, 10 seats guaranteed
for other ethnic minorities; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 November 2007 (next to be held in 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - PDK 34.3%, LDK 22.6%,
AKR 12.3%, LDD 10.0%, AAK 9.6%, other 11.2%; seats by party - PDK
37, LDK 25, AKR 13, LDD 11, AAK 10, other 4
Kuwait
unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Umma (50 seats;
members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms; all
cabinet ministers are also ex officio voting members of the National
Assembly)
elections: last held 16 May 2009 (next election to be held in 2013)
election results: percent of vote by bloc - NA; seats by bloc -
Sunni Muslim groups 11, liberals 7, Shiite Muslim groups 6, Popular
Action Bloc 3, unaffiliated tribal groups 23
Kyrgyzstan
unicameral Supreme Council or Jorgorku Kengesh (90 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 16 December 2007 (next to be held in 2012)
election results: Supreme Council - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - Ak Jol 71, Social Democratic Party 11, KCP 8
Laos
unicameral National Assembly (115 seats; members elected by
popular vote from a list of candidates selected by the Lao People's
Revolutionary Party to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 30 April 2006 (next to be held in 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
LPRP 113, independents 2
Latvia
unicameral Parliament or Saeima (100 seats; members are
elected by proportional representation from party lists by popular
vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 October 2006 (next to be held in October 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - TP 19.5%, ZZS 16.7%, JL
16.4%, SC 14.4%; LPP/LC 8.6%; TB/LNNK 6.9%; PCTVL 6%; seats by party
- TP 23, ZZS 18, JL 18, SC 17, LPP/LC 10, TB/LNNK 8, PCTVL 6; note -
seats by party as of January 2009 - TP 21, SC 18, ZZS 17, JL 14,
LPP/LC 10, Civic Union 7, TB/LNNK 5, PCTVL 5, independents 3
Lebanon
unicameral National Assembly or Majlis Alnuwab (Arabic) or
Assemblee Nationale (French) (128 seats; members elected by popular
vote on the basis of sectarian proportional representation to serve
four-year terms)
elections: last held on 7 June 2009 (next to be held in 2013)
election results: percent of vote by group - March 8 Coalition
54.7%, March 14 Coalition 45.3%; seats by group - March 14 Coalition
71; March 8 Coalition 57
Lesotho
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22
principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party)
and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by popular vote and 40 by
proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year
terms)
elections: last held 17 February 2007 (next to be held in 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
LCD 61, NIP 21, ABC 17, LWP 10, ACP 4, BNP 3, other 4
Liberia
bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (30
seats; note - number of seats changed in 11 October 2005 elections;
members elected by popular vote to serve nine-year terms) and the
House of Representatives (64 seats; members elected by popular vote
to serve six-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 11 October 2005 (next to be held in
October 2011); House of Representatives - last held 11 October 2005
(next to be held in October 2011)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - COTOL 7, NPP 4, CDC 3, LP 3, UP 3, APD 3, other 7; House of
Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
CDC 15, LP 9, COTOL 8, UP 8, APD 5, NPP 4, other 15
note: junior senators - those who received the second most votes in
each county in the 11 October 2005 election - will only serve a
six-year first term because the Liberian constitution mandates
staggered Senate elections to ensure continuity of government; all
senators will be eligible for nine-year terms thereafter
Libya
unicameral General People's Congress (760 seats; members
elected indirectly through a hierarchy of people's committees)
Liechtenstein
unicameral Parliament or Landtag (25 seats; members
are elected by popular vote under proportional representation to
serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 February 2009 (next to be held February 2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - VU 47.6%, FBP 43.5%, FL
8.9%; seats by party - VU 13, FBP 11, FL 1
Lithuania
unicameral Parliament or Seimas (141 seats; 71 members are
elected by popular vote, 70 are elected by proportional
representation; serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 and 26 October 2008 (next to be held October
2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - TS-LKD 19.7%, TPP
15.1%, TT 12.7%, LSDP 11.7%, KDP+J 9%, LRLS 5.7%, LCS 5.3%, LLRA
4.8%, LVLS 3.7%, NS 3.6%, other 8.7%; seats by faction - TS-LKD 44,
LSDP 26, TPP 16, TT 15, LRLS 11, KDP+J 10, LCS 8, LLRA 3, LVLS 3, NS
1, independent 4
Luxembourg
unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (60
seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 7 June 2009 (next to be held by June 2014)
election results: percent of vote by party - CSV 38%, LSAP 21.6%, DP
15%, Green Party 11.7%, ADR 8.1%, The Left 3.3%, other 2.3%; seats
by party - CSV 26, LSAP 13, DP 9, Green Party 7, ADR 4, The Left 1
note: there is also a Council of State that serves as an advisory
body to the Chamber of Deputies; the Council of State has 21 members
appointed by the Grand Duke on the advice of the prime minister
Macau
unicameral Legislative Assembly (29 seats; 12 members elected
by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and 7 appointed by the chief
executive; serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 September 2005 (next to be held on 20
September 2009)
election results: percent of vote - New Democratic Macau Association
18.8%, Macau United Citizens' Association 16.6%, Union for
Development 13.3%, Union for Promoting Progress 9.6%, Macau
Development Alliance 9.3%, others 32.4%; seats by political group -
New Democratic Macau Association 2, Macau United Citizens'
Association 2, Union for Development 2, Union for Promoting Progress
2, Macau Development Alliance 1, New Hope 1, Convergence for
Development 1, General Union for the Good of Macau 1; 10 seats
filled by professional and business groups; seven members appointed
by chief executive
Macedonia
unicameral Assembly or Sobranie (120 seats; members
elected by popular vote from party lists based on the percentage of
the overall vote the parties gain in each of six electoral
districts; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 1 June and 15 June 2008 (next to be held by
July 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - VMRO-DPMNE-led block
49%, SDSM-led block 24%, BDI/DUI 13%, PDSh/DPA 8%, other 6%; seats
by party - VMRO-DPMNE-led block 63, SDSM-led block 27, BDI/DUI 18,
PDSh/DPA 11, PEI 1
Madagascar
bicameral legislature consists of a Senate or Senat (100
seats; two-thirds of the seats filled by regional assemblies; the
remaining one-third of seats appointed by the president; to serve
four-year terms) and a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (127
seats - reduced from 160 seats by an April 2007 national referendum;
members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: National Assembly - last held 23 September 2007 (next to
be held in late 2010); note - a power-sharing agreement in the
summer of 2009 established a 15-month transition, concluding in
general elections
election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - TIM 106, LEADER/Fanilo 1, independents 20
Malawi
unicameral National Assembly (193 seats; members elected by
popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 May 2009 (next to be held in May 2014)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
DPP 114, MCP 26, UDF 17, independents 32, other 4
Malaysia
bicameral Parliament or Parlimen consists of Senate or
Dewan Negara (70 seats; 44 appointed by the king, 26 elected by 13
state legislatures; serve three-year terms with limit of two terms)
and House of Representatives or Dewan Rakyat (222 seats; members
elected by popular vote; serve up to five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held on 8 March 2008
(next to be held by June 2013)
election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote - BN
coalition 50.3%, opposition parties 46.8%, others 2.9%; seats - BN
coalition 140, opposition parties 82
Maldives
unicameral People's Council or People's Majlis (77 seats;
members elected by direct vote to serve five-year terms); note - the
Majlis in February 2009 passed legislation that incresed the number
of seats to 77 from 50
elections: last held 9 May 2009 (next to be held in 2014)
election results: percent of vote - DRP 36.8%, MDP 32.9 %, PA 9.2%,
DQP 2.6% AP 1.3%, independents 17.1%; seats by party - DRP 28, MDP
25, PA 7, DQP 2, AP 1, independents 13; note - one seat unfilled
Mali
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (147 seats;
members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 1 and 22 July 2007 (next to be held in July
2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
ADP coalition 113 (including ADEMA 51, URD 34, MPR 8, CNID 7, UDD 3,
and other 10), FDR coalition 15 (including RPM 11, PARENA 4), SADI
4, independent 15
Malta
unicameral House of Representatives (normally 65 seats;
members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional
representation to serve five-year terms; note - the current
Parliament is composed of 69 seats; when the political party winning
the plurality of votes does not win a majority of seats, the
constitution provides that a sufficient number of seats will be
added to Parliament to ensure that the party that won the elections
has a majority in Parliament)
elections: last held on 8 March 2008 (next to be held by March 2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - PN 49.3%, MLP 48.9%,
other 1.8%; seats by party - PN 35, MLP 34
Marshall Islands
unicameral legislature or Nitijela (33 seats;
members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 19 November 2007 (next to be held by November
2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
independents 4
note: the Council of Chiefs or Ironij is a 12-member body comprised
of tribal chiefs that advises on matters affecting customary law and
practice
Mauritania
bicameral legislature consists of the Senate or Majlis
al-Shuyukh (56 seats; 53 members elected by municipal leaders and 3
members elected by Mauritanians abroad to serve six-year terms; a
portion of seats up for election every two years) and the National
Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (95 seats; members elected by popular
vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 21 January and 4 February 2007 (next
to be held in 2009); National Assembly - last held 19 November and 3
December 2006 (next to be held in 2011); note - it is unclear when
the Senate elections originally scheduled for 2009 will be held
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - Mithaq (coalition of independents and parties associated
with the former regime) 37, CFCD (coalition of political parties)
15, representatives of the diaspora 3, undecided 1; National
Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Mithaq 51
(independents 37, PRDR 7, UDP 3, RDU 3, Alternative (El-Badil) 1),
CFCD 41 (RFD 16, UFP 9, APP 6, Centrist Reformists 4, HATEM-PMUC 3,
RD 2, PUDS 1), RNDLE 1, UCD 1, FP 1
Mauritius
unicameral National Assembly (70 seats; 62 members elected
by popular vote, 8 appointed by the election commission to give
representation to various ethnic minorities; to serve five-year
terms)
elections: last held on 3 July 2005 (next to be held in July 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - AS
38, MSM/MMM 22, OPR 2; appointed seats - AS 4, MSM/MMM 2, OPR 2
Mayotte
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 9 and 16 March 2008 (next to be held in 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
UMP 8, Diverse Right 4, independents 4, Citizens and Republic
Movement 1, Democratic Movement 1, Diverse Left 1; note - political
parties are the same as parties in France
note: Mayotte elects two members of the French Senate; elections
last held 21 September 2008 (next to be held in September 2014);
results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UC-UDF 1,
UMP 1; Mayotte also elects one member to the French National
Assembly; elections last held 10-17 June 2007 (next to be held in
2012); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
independent 1
Mexico
bicameral National Congress or Congreso de la Union consists
of the Senate or Camara de Senadores (128 seats; 96 members are
elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms, and 32 seats are
allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote) and the Chamber
of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (500 seats; 300 members are
elected by popular vote; remaining 200 members are allocated on the
basis of each party's popular vote; to serve three-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 July 2006 for all of the seats (next
to be held 1 July 2012); Chamber of Deputies - last held 2 July 2006
(next to be held 5 July 2009)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - PAN 52, PRI 33, PRD 26, PVEM 6, CD 5, PT 5, independent 1;
Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party
- PAN 207, PRD 127, PRI 106, PVEM 17, CD 17, PT 11, other 15
Micronesia, Federated States of
unicameral Congress (14 seats; 4 -
one elected from each state to serve four-year terms and 10 -
elected from single-member districts delineated by population to
serve two-year terms; members elected by popular vote)
elections: last held 3 March 2009 (next to be held in March 2011)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 14
Moldova
unicameral Parliament or Parlamentul (101 seats; members
elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 29 July 2009 (next to be held in 2013); note -
this was the second parliamentary election in less than four months;
the earlier parliament (elected 5 April 2009) could not agree on a
presidential candidate
election results: percent of vote by party - PCRM 44.7%, PLDM 16.6%,
PL 14.7%, PD 12.5%, AMN 7.4%; seats by party - PCRM 48, PLDM 18, PL
15, PD 13, AMN 7
Monaco
unicameral National Council or Conseil National (24 seats; 16
members elected by list majority system, 8 by proportional
representation; to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 February 2008 (next to be held in February
2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - UPM 52.2%, REM 40.5%,
Monaco Together 7.3%; seats by party - UPM 21, REM 3
Mongolia
unicameral State Great Hural 76 seats; members elected by
popular vote to serve four-year terms
elections: last held 29 June 2008 (next to be held in June 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
MPRP 45, DP 27, others 4; note - 1 seat disputed and unfilled
Montenegro
unicameral Assembly (81 seats; members elected by direct
vote for four-year terms; changed from 74 seats in 2006)
elections: last held 29 March 2009 (next to be held in 2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - Coalition for European
Montenegro 51.94%, SNP 16.83%, NSD 9.22%, PZP 6.03%, other
(including Albanian minority parties) 15.98%; seats by party -
Coalition for European Montenegro 48, SNP 16, NSD 8, PZP 5, Albanian
minority parties 4
Montserrat
unicameral Legislative Council (11 seats, 9 popularly
elected; members serve five-year terms)
note: expanded in 2001 from 7 to 9 elected members with attorney
general and financial secretary sitting as ex-officio members
elections: last held 8 September 2009 (next to be held by 2014)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
MCAP 6, independents 3
note: in 2001, the Elections Commission instituted a single
constituency/voter-at-large system whereby all eligible voters cast
ballots for all nine seats of the Legislative Council