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50 of the 65 seats in the National Assembly | ||
| Turnout | 69.4% ( 4.2pp) | |
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| Constitution |
 Kuwaitportal |
General elections were held in Kuwait on 5 December 2020. [1] [2] [3] Two-thirds of the incumbents lost their seats, including the 2016 parliament's sole woman MP Safa Al Hashem. [4]
Registration of candidates contesting for the 50 seats of the National Assembly took place between 26 October and 4 November 2020. [5] [6] 102 schools were used for the 2020 National Assembly elections on December 5. [7] Each school had a clinic set up to check on the health condition of all those entering. [8]
The 50 elected members of the National Assembly are elected from five 10-seat constituencies by single non-transferable vote. [9] Political parties are not officially licensed, therefore candidates run as individuals, although many political groups operate freely as de facto political parties. [10] All Kuwaiti citizens (both male and female) above the age of 21 have the right to vote. Expatriate workers, who constituted 70% of the population, were not enfranchised.
Overall, opposition candidates won 24 seats, up from 16 in the previous parliament. The election was seen as a victory for the anti-government opposition bloc. Thirty of the elected candidates were under the age of 45; whilst there were 29 female candidates, none were elected, leaving the parliament without a female MP for the first time since the year 2012. [10] There was a total of 567,694 registered voters, of which 394,131 cast a valid vote. [11]
Following the elections, a new Speaker of the National Assembly was elected on 15 December. Incumbent Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim was re-elected with 33 votes, defeating Bader Nasser Al-Humaidi, who received 28. Four members did not vote.
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marzouq Al-Ghanim | Independent | 33 | 54.10 | |
| Bader Al Humaidi | Independent | 28 | 45.90 | |
| Total | 61 | 100.00 | ||
| Valid votes | 61 | 95.31 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 3 | 4.69 | ||
| Total votes | 64 | 100.00 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 65 | 98.46 | ||
Parliament unanimously approved a motion of noncooperation, meaning the cabinet must be replaced. [12]
| Parliamentary elections | |
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| Municipal elections | |
* Constitutional Convention | |
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