bicameral Parliament consists of a Chamber of Counselors (or
upper house) (270 seats; members elected indirectly by local
councils, professional organizations, and labor syndicates for
nine-year terms; one-third of the members are elected every three
years) and Chamber of Representatives (or lower house) (325 seats;
295 members elected by multi-seat constituencies and 30 from
national lists of women; members elected by popular vote for
five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Counselors - last held 8 September 2006 (next
to be held in 2009); Chamber of Representatives - last held 7
September 2007 (next to be held in 2012)
election results: Chamber of Counselors - percent of vote by party -
NA; seats by party - PI 17, MP 14, RNI 13, USFP 11, UC 6, PND 4, PPS
4, Al Ahd 4, other 17; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote
by party - NA; seats by party - PI 52, PJD 46, MP 41, RNI 39, USFP
38, UC 27, PPS 17, FFD 9, MDS 9, Al Ahd 8, other 39
Mozambique
unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da
Republica (250 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote
to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 1-2 December 2004 (next to be held on 28
October 2009)
election results: percent of vote by party - FRELIMO 62%, RENAMO
29.7%, other 8.3%; seats by party - FRELIMO 160, RENAMO 90
Namibia
bicameral legislature consists of the National Council (26
seats; two members are chosen from each regional council to serve
six-year terms) and the National Assembly (72 seats; members are
elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: National Council - elections for regional councils to
determine members of the National Council held 29-30 November 2004
(next to be held in November 2010); National Assembly - last held
15-16 November 2004 (next to be held in November 2009)
election results: National Council - percent of vote by party -
SWAPO 89.7%, UDF 4.7%, NUDO 2.8%, DTA 1.9%, other 0.9%; seats by
party - SWAPO 24, UDF 1, DTA 1; National Assembly - percent of vote
by party - SWAPO 76.1%, COD 7.3%, DTA 5.1%, NUDO 4.2%, UDF 3.6%, RP
1.9%, MAG 0.8%, other 1.0%; seats by party - SWAPO 55, COD 5, DTA 4,
NUDO 3, UDF 3, RP 1, MAG 1
note: the National Council is primarily an advisory body
Nauru
unicameral parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular
vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 26 April 2008 (next to be held in 2011)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 18;
note - President Marcus STEPHEN called a snap election to break a
parliamentary stalemate blocking legislative action
Nepal
unicameral Constituent Assembly (601 seats; 240 seats decided
by direct popular vote; 335 seats by proportional representation; 26
appointed by the Cabinet (Council of Ministers))
elections: last held 10 April 2008 (next to be held NA)
election results: percent of vote by party - CPN-M 38%, NC 19%,
CPN-UML 19%,Madhesi People's Right Forum 9%, Terai-Madhes Democratic
Party and Sadbhavana Party 5%, other 10%; seats by party - CPN-M
220, NC 110, CPN-UML 103, Madhesi People's Rights Forum 52,
Terai-Madhes Democratic Party 20, Sadbhawana Party 9, other smaller
parties 61; note - 26 seats filled by the new Cabinet
Netherlands
bicameral States General or Staten Generaal consists of
the First Chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly
elected by the country's 12 provincial councils to serve four-year
terms) and the Second Chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members
elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: First Chamber - last held 29 May 2007 (next to be held in
May 2011); Second Chamber - last held 22 November 2006 (next to be
held by early 2011)
election results: First Chamber - percent of vote by party - NA%;
seats by party - CDA 21, PvdA 14, VVD 14, Socialist Party 11,
Christian Union 4, Green Left Party 4, D66 2, other 5; Second
Chamber - percent of vote by party - CDA 26.5%, PvdA 21.2%,
Socialist Party 16.6%, VVD 14.6%, Party for Freedom 5.9%, Green
Party 4.6%, Christian Union 4.0%, other 6.6%; seats by party - CDA
41, PvdA 33, Socialist Party 25, VVD 22, Party for Freedom 9, Green
Party 7, Christian Union 6, other 7
Netherlands Antilles
unicameral States or Staten (22 seats, Curacao
14, Bonaire 3, St. Maarten 3, St. Eustatius 1, Saba 1; members are
elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 January 2006 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
PAR 5, MAN 3, FOL 2, Forsa Korsou 2, National Alliance 2, PNP 2, UPB
2, DP-St. E 1, DP-St. M 1, PDB 1, WIPM 1
note: the government is a coalition of several parties
New Caledonia
elections: unicameral Territorial Congress or Congres
du territoire (54 seats; members belong to the three Provincial
Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to
serve five-year terms) last held 9 May 2009 (next to be held in 10
May 2014)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
UMP 13, Caledonia Together 10, UC 8, UNI 8, AE 6, FLNKS 3, Labor
Party 3, other 3
note: New Caledonia holds two seats in the French Senate; elections
last held 21 September 2008 (next to be held not later than
September 2014); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - UMP 2; New Caledonia also elects two seats to the French
National Assembly; elections last held 10 and 17 June 2007 (next to
be held on June 2012); results - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - UMP 2
New Zealand
unicameral House of Representatives - commonly called
Parliament (usually 120 seats; 69 members elected by popular vote in
single-member constituencies including 7 Maori constituencies, and
51 proportional seats chosen from party lists; serve three-year
terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2008 (next to be held not later than
27 November 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NP 44.9%, NZLP 34%,
Green Party 6.7%, NZ First 4%, ACT New Zealand 3.7%, Maori 2.4%,
Progressive 0.9%, UF 0.9%, other 6.6%; seats by party - NP 58, NZLP
43, Green Party 9, ACT New Zealand 5, Maori 5, Progressive 1, UF 1
note: results of 2008 election saw the total number of seats
increase to 122
Nicaragua
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (92
seats; 90 members are elected by proportional representation and
party lists to serve five-year terms; 1 seat for the previous
president, 1 seat for the runner-up in previous presidential
election)
elections: last held 5 November 2006 (next to be held by November
2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
FSLN 38, PLC 25, ALN 23 (22 plus one for presidential candidate
Eduardo MONTEALEGRE, runner-up in the 2006 presidential election),
MRS 5, APRE 1 (outgoing President Enrique BOLANOS); note - as of 1
January 2009: seats by party - FSLN 38, PLC 25, BDN 15, ALN 6, MRS
3, APRE 1, Independent 4
Niger
unicameral National Assembly (113 seats; members elected by
popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 20 October 2009 (next to be held in 2014)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
MNSD 76, RSD 15, RDP 7, PNA-Alouma 1, Alkalami 1, Nigerien Party of
the Masses for Labor 1, independents 12
Nigeria
bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (109
seats, 3 from each state plus 1 from Abuja; members elected by
popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives
(360 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 21 April 2007 (next to be held in
April 2011); House of Representatives - last held 21 April 2007
(next to be held in April 2011)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 53.7%,
ANPP 27.9%, AD 9.7%, other 8.7%; seats by party - PDP 76, ANPP 27,
AD 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP
54.5%, ANPP 27.4%, AD 8.8%, UNPP 2.8%, NPD 1.9%, APGA 1.6%, PRP
0.8%; seats by party - PDP 76, ANPP 27, AD 6, UNPP 2, APGA 2, NPD 1,
PRP 1, vacant 1
Niue
unicameral Legislative Assembly (20 seats; members elected by
popular vote to serve three-year terms; six elected from a common
roll and 14 are village representatives)
elections: last held 7 June 2008 (next to be held in 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - 20
independents
Norfolk Island
unicameral Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members
elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four
votes can be given to any one candidate; to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 21 March 2007 (next to be held by 28 March 2010)
election results: seats - independents 9 (note - no political
parties)
Northern Mariana Islands
bicameral legislature consists of the
Senate (9 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve
four-year staggered terms) and the House of Representatives (20
seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 3 November 2007 (next to be held in
November 2009); House of Representatives - last held 3 November 2007
(next to be held in November 2009)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - Covenant Party 3, Republican Party 3, Democratic Party 1,
independents 2; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party
- NA; seats by party - Republican Party 12, Covenant Party 4,
Democratic Party 1, independents 3
note: the Northern Mariana Islands elects one nonvoting delegate to
the US House of Representatives; election last held 4 November 2008
(next to be held in November 2010); seats by party - independent 1
Norway
modified unicameral Parliament or Storting (169 seats;
members are elected by popular vote by proportional representation
to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 14 September 2009 (next to be held in September
2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - Labor Party 35.4%,
Progress Party 22.9%, Conservative Party 17.2%, Socialist Left Party
6.2%, Center Party 6.2%, Christian People's Party 5.5%, Liberal
Party 3.9%, other 2.7%; seats by party - Labor Party 64, Progress
Party 41, Conservative Party 30, Socialist Left Party 11, Center
Party 11, Christian People's Party 10, Liberal Party 2
note: for certain purposes, the parliament divides itself into two
chambers and elects one-fourth of its membership in the Lagting and
three-fourths of its membership in the Odelsting
Oman
bicameral Majlis Oman consists of Majlis al-Dawla or upper
chamber (71 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory
powers only) and Majlis al-Shura or lower chamber (84 seats; members
elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms; body has only
advisory powers)
elections: last held 27 October 2007 (next to be held in 2011)
election results: new candidates won 46 seats and 38 members of the
outgoing Majlis kept their positions; none of the 20 female
candidates were elected
Pakistan
bicameral parliament or Majlis-e-Shoora consists of the
Senate (100 seats; members indirectly elected by provincial
assemblies and the territories' representatives in the National
Assembly to serve six-year terms; one half are elected every three
years) and the National Assembly (342 seats; 272 members elected by
popular vote; 60 seats reserved for women; 10 seats reserved for
non-Muslims; serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held on 3 March 2009 (next to be held in
March 2012); National Assembly - last held on 18 February 2008 with
by-elections on 26 June 2008 (next to be held in 2013)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - PPPP 27, PML-Q 21, MMA 9, PML-N 7, ANP 6, MQM 6, JUI-F 4,
BNP-A 2, JWP 1, NPP 1, PKMAP 1, PML-F 1, PPP 1, independents 13;
National Assembly - percent of votes by party - NA; seats by party -
PPPP 124, PML-N 91, PML 54, MQM 25, ANP 13, MMA 7, PML-F 5, BNP-A 1,
NPP 1, PPP-S 1, independents 17; note - 3 seats remain unfilled
Palau
bicameral National Congress or Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK)
consists of the Senate (9 seats; members elected by popular vote on
a population basis to serve four-year terms) and the House of
Delegates (16 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve
four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 4 November 2008 (next to be held in
November 2012); House of Delegates - last held 4 November 2008 (next
to be held in November 2012)
election results: Senate - percent of vote - NA; seats -
independents 9; House of Delegates - percent of vote - NA; seats -
independents 16
Panama
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (71 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 May 2009 (next to be held May 2014)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
PRD 26, Panamenista 22, CD 14, PU 4, Independent 2, MOLIRENA 2, PP 1
note: legislators from outlying rural districts are chosen on a
plurality basis while districts located in more populous towns and
cities elect multiple legislators by means of a proportion-based
formula
Papua New Guinea
unicameral National Parliament (109 seats, 89
filled from open electorates and 20 from provinces and national
capital district; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year
terms); constitution allows up to 126 seats
elections: last held from 30 June to 10 July 2007; next to be held
in June 2012
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
National Alliance 27, PNGP 8, PAP 6, URP 6, PANGU 5, PDM 5,
independents 19, others 33; note - election to 1 seat was nullified
note: 15 other parties won 4 or fewer seats; association with
political parties is fluid
Paraguay
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists
of the Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (45 seats; members
are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the
Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (80 seats; members are
elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 20 April 2008 (next to be
held in April 2013); Chamber of Deputies - last held 20 April 2008
(next to be held in April 2013)
election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party -
NA; seats by party - ANR 15, PLRA 14, UNACE 9, PPQ 4, other 3;
Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party
- ANR 30, PLRA 27, UNACE 15, PPQ 3, APC 2, other 3
Peru
unicameral Congress of the Republic of Peru or Congreso de la
Republica del Peru (120 seats; members are elected by popular vote
to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 April 2006 (next to be held in April 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - UPP 21.2%, PAP 20.6%,
UN 15.3%, AF 13.1%, FC 7.1%, PP 4.1%, RN 4.0%, other 14.6%; seats by
party - UPP 45, PAP 36, UN 17, AF 13, FC 5, PP 2, RN 2
Philippines
bicameral Congress or Kongreso consists of the Senate or
Senado (24 seats - one-half elected every three years; members
elected at large by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the
House of Representatives or Kapulungan Ng Nga Kinatawan (as a result
of May 2007 election it has 240 seats including 218 members
representing districts and 22 sectoral party-list members
representing special minorities elected on the basis of 1 seat for
every 2% of the total vote but limited to 3 seats; members elected
by popular vote to serve three-year terms; note - the Constitution
prohibits the House of Representatives from having more than 250
members)
elections: Senate - last held on 14 May 2007 (next to be held in May
2010); House of Representatives - elections last held on 14 May 2007
(next to be held in May 2010)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - Lakas 4, LP 4, Nacionalista 3, NPC 2, PDP-Laban 2, PMP 2,
Kampi 1, LDP 1, PRP 1, independents 3; note - there are 23 rather
than 24 sitting senators because one senator was elected mayor of
Manila; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - Lakas 92, Kampi 54, NPC 25, LP 21, Party-list 22,
independents 3, others 26; there are 238 rather than 240 sitting
representatives because two died in office
Pitcairn Islands
unicameral Island Council (10 seats; 5 members
elected by popular vote, 1 nominated by the 5 elected members, 2
appointed by the governor including 1 seat for the Island Secretary,
the Island Mayor, and a commissioner liaising between the governor
and council; elected members serve one-year terms)
elections: last held 24 December 2008 (next to be held in 24
December 2009)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - all independents
Poland
bicameral legislature consists of an upper house, the Senate
or Senat (100 seats; members are elected by a majority vote on a
provincial basis to serve four-year terms), and a lower house, the
Sejm (460 seats; members are elected under a complex system of
proportional representation to serve four-year terms); the
designation of National Assembly or Zgromadzenie Narodowe is only
used on those rare occasions when the two houses meet jointly
elections: Senate - last held 21 October 2007 (next to be held by
October 2011); Sejm elections last held 21 October 2007 (next to be
held by October 2011)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - PO 60, PiS 39, independents 1; Sejm - percent of vote by
party - PO 41.5%, PiS 32.1%, LiD 13.2%, PSL 8.9%, other 4.3%; seats
by party - PO 209, PiS 166, LiD 53, PSL 31, German minorities 1;
note - seats by parliamentary grouping as of February 2009 - PO 208,
PiS 156, Left 42, PSL 31, SDPL-New Left 5, Polska XXI 6, Democratic
Caucus 3, German minorities 1, nonaffiliated 8
note: one seat is assigned to ethnic minority parties in the Sejm
only
Portugal
unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da
Republica (230 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve
four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 September 2009 (next to be held in fall 2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - PS 37.7%, PSD 30%,
CDS/PP 10.8%, BE 10.2%, CDU 8.1%, other 3.2%; seats by party - PS
96, PSD 78, CDS/PP 21, BE 16, CDU 15
Puerto Rico
bicameral Legislative Assembly consists of the Senate
(at least 27 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to
serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives (51 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 4 November 2008 (next to be held
November 2012); House of Representatives - last held 4 November 2008
(next to be held in November 2012)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PNP 81.5%, PPD
18.5%; seats by party - PNP 22, PPD 5; House of Representatives -
percent of vote by party - PNP 72.5%, PPD 27.5%; seats by party -
PNP 37, PPD 14
note: Puerto Rico elects, by popular vote, a resident commissioner
to serve a four-year term as a nonvoting representative in the US
House of Representatives; aside from not voting on the House floor,
he enjoys all the rights of a member of Congress; elections last
held 4 November 2008 (next to be held in November 2012); results -
percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PNP 1
Qatar
unicameral Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura (35 seats;
members appointed)
note: no legislative elections have been held since 1970 when there
were partial elections to the body; Council members have had their
terms extended every year since the new constitution came into force
on 9 June 2005; the constitution provides for a new 45-member
Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura; the public would elect
two-thirds of the Majlis al-Shura; the Amir would appoint the
remaining members; preparations are underway to conduct elections to
the Majlis al-Shura
Romania
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or
Senat (137 seats; members are elected by popular vote in a mixed
electoral system to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of
Deputies or Camera Deputatilor (334 seats; members are elected by
popular vote in a mixed electoral system to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 30 November 2008 (next expected to be
held in November 2012); Chamber of Deputies - last held 30 November
2008 (next expected to be held November 2012)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by alliance/party -
PSD-PC 34.2%, PDL 33.6%, PNL 18.7%, UDMR 6.4%, other 7.1%; seats by
alliance/party - PSD-PC 49, PDL 51, PNL 28, UDMR 9; Chamber of
Deputies - percent of vote by alliance/party - PSD-PC 33.1%, PDL
32.4%, PNL 18.6%, UDMR 6.2%, ethnic minorities 3.6%, other 6.1%;
seats by alliance/party - PSD-PC 114, PDL 115, PNL 65, UDMR 22,
ethnic minorities 18
Russia
bicameral Federal Assembly or Federalnoye Sobraniye consists
of an upper house, the Federation Council or Sovet Federatsii (168
seats; as of July 2000, members appointed by the top executive and
legislative officials in each of the 84 federal administrative units
- oblasts, krays, republics, autonomous okrugs and oblasts, and the
federal cities of Moscow and Saint Petersburg; serve four-year
terms) and a lower house, the State Duma or Gosudarstvennaya Duma
(450 seats; as of 2007, all members elected by proportional
representation from party lists winning at least 7% of the vote;
members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: State Duma - last held 2 December 2007 (next to be held
in December 2011)
election results: State Duma - United Russia 64.3%, CPRF 11.5%, LDPR
8.1%, Just Russia 7.7%, other 8.4%; total seats by party - United
Russia 315, CPRF 57, LDPR 40, Just Russia 38
Rwanda
bicameral Parliament consists of Senate (26 seats; 12 members
elected by local councils, 8 appointed by the president, 4 by the
Political Organizations Forum, 2 represent institutions of higher
learning; to serve eight-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies (80
seats; 53 members elected by popular vote, 24 women elected by local
bodies, 3 selected by youth and disability organizations; serve
five-year terms)
elections: Senate - members appointed as part of the transitional
government (next to be held in 2011); Chamber of Deputies - last
held 15 September 2008 (next to be held September 2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - RPF 78.8%, PSD 13.1%,
PL 7.5%; seats by party - RPF 42, PSD 7, PL 4, additional 27 members
indirectly elected
Saint Barthelemy
unicameral Territorial Council (19 seats; members
are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 1 and 8 July 2007 (next to be held in July 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - SBA 72.2%,
Action-Equilibre-Transparence 9.9%, Ensemble pour Saint-Barthelemy
7.9%, Tous Unis pour Saint-Barthelemy 9.9%; seats by party - SBA 16,
Action-Equilibre-Transparence 1, Ensemble pour Saint-Barthelemy 1,
Tous Unis pour Saint-Barthelemy 1
note: Saint Barthelemy elects one seat to 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 - UMP
1
Saint Helena
unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the
speaker, three ex officio and 12 elected members; members are
elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 31 August 2005 (next to be held in November
2009)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 12
Saint Kitts and Nevis
unicameral National Assembly (14 seats, 3
appointed and 11 popularly elected from single-member
constituencies; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 25 October 2004 (next to be held by 2009)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
SKNLP 7, CCM 2, NRP 1, PAM 1
Saint Lucia
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (11 seats;
six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on
the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after
consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the
House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular vote to
serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 11 December 2006 (next to
be held in December 2011)
election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - UWP
50%, SLP 46.9%, other 3.1%; seats by party - UWP 11, SLP 6
Saint Martin
unicameral Territorial Council (23 seats; members are
elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 1 and 8 July 2007 (next to be held in July 2012)
election results: percent of seats by party - UPP 49%, RRR 42.2%,
Reussir Saint-Martin 8.9%; seats by party - UPP 16, RRR 6, Reussir
Saint-Martin 1
note: Saint Martin elects one seat to the French Senate; election
last held 21 September 2008 (next to be held in September 2014);
results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 1