Constitution of Nicaragua

Last updated September 24, 2022

The Constitution of Nicaragua was reformed due to a negotiation of the executive and legislative branches in 1995. The reform of the 1987 Sandinista Constitution gave extensive new powers and independence to the National Assembly, including permitting the Assembly to override a presidential veto with a simple majority vote and eliminating the president's ability to pocket veto a bill. Both the president and the members of the unicameral National Assembly are elected to concurrent five-year terms.

History

The Nicaraguan Constitution promulgated on January 1, 1987 provided the final step in the institutionalization of the Sandinista regime and the framework under which the Chamorro government would take office. It was the ninth constitution in Nicaraguan history.^[1] The Sandinistas' revolutionary mythology and aspirations were glorified in the preamble, and the Nicaraguan Army was constitutionally named the Sandinista People's Army.^[1] Yet, even though drafted and approved by a Sandinista-dominated assembly, the constitution was not a revolutionary document.^[1]

It established a democratic system of government with a mixed economy based on a separation of powers that could guarantee civil liberties.^[1] There was some discontent with parts of the new system.^[1] Early objections were raised that the executive branch was too strong, that property rights were not adequately protected, and that some of the languages was vague and subject to widely differing interpretations.^[1] These objections continued to be an issue under the Chamorro government.^[1]

The Executive

The constitution provides for a strong executive branch, although the legislative and judicial branches retain significant powers of their own.^[1] Under the constitution, the president has broader powers than does the president of the United States.^[1] The president is commander in chief of the military, has the power to appoint all ministers and vice ministers of his or her cabinet, and proposes a national budget.^[1]

The executive shares legislative powers that allow him or her to enact executive decrees with the force of law in fiscal and administrative matters, as well as to promulgate regulations to implement the laws. The president assumes legislative powers when the National Assembly is in recess.^[2] The president has extraordinary powers during national emergencies, including the powers to suspend basic civil liberties and to prepare and approve the national budget.^[3]

The president's term was set at six years by a decree promulgated in January 1984, during the period when the country had no constitution.^[3] The 1987 Constitution reaffirmed a six-year term for the president.^[3]

The Legislature

The 1987 constitution replaced the bicameral Congress, which had existed under previous constitutions, with a unicameral National Assembly.^[3] The makeup of the National Assembly, first established under the 1984 decree and confirmed by the 1987 constitution, consists of ninety members directly elected by a system of proportional representation plus any unelected presidential or vice presidential candidates who receive a certain percentage of the vote.^[3] In 1985 the National Assembly had ninety-six members and in 1990, ninety-two.^[3] Terms are for six years, to run concurrently with the president's term.^[3]

The National Assembly has significant powers, and its cooperation is essential for the smooth functioning of the government.^[3] Under the constitution, representatives to the National Assembly propose legislation, which is made law by a simple majority of the representatives present if the National Assembly has a quorum.^[3]^[4] The National Assembly can override a presidential veto by quorum.^[3] The constitution also gives the National Assembly the power "to consider, discuss and approve" the budget presented by the president.^[5] The National Assembly chooses the seven members of the Supreme Court from lists provided by the president and has the authority to "officially interpret the laws", a prerogative that gives the National Assembly judicial powers.^[6]

The Judiciary

Under the 1987 constitution, the Supreme Court is an independent branch of government, whose members are selected for six-year terms by the National Assembly from lists submitted by the president.^[6] From among those members, the president selects the head of the Supreme Court.^[6] The constitution also provides that the Supreme Court justices appoint judges to the lower courts.^[6] Supreme Court justices can only be removed constitutionally "for reasons determined by law".^[6]

In National Assembly-approved 1990 reforms to the Organic Law of Tribunals, the Chamorro government enlarged the Supreme Court's membership from the constitutionally mandated seven justices to nine, as a way of breaking what was perceived as Sandinista domination of the court.^[6] Those seven members had been appointed to their six-year terms in December 1987, and their terms were to expire in 1993.^[7]

In 1990 President Chamorro also dismissed the court's Sandinista-appointed head and replaced him with one of her own choosing.^[8] The evaluation of this act depended on one's political point of view.^[8] According to Nicaraguan analysts, the nine-member court decided that it would take decisions only on the basis of consensus, a procedure some saw as guaranteeing Sandinista influence on the court, others saw as neutralizing Sandinista influence, and still others saw as effectively paralyzing the operations of the court.^[8]

Related Research Articles

Nicaragua is a presidential republic, in which the President of Nicaragua is both head of state and head of government, and there is a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government.

A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president or monarch vetoes a bill to stop it from becoming law. In many countries, veto powers are established in the country's constitution. Veto powers are also found at other levels of government, such as in state, provincial or local government, and in international bodies.

The President of India is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu is the 15th and current president, having taken office from 25 July 2022.

The federal government of the United States is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a federal district, five major self-governing territories and several island possessions. The federal government, sometimes simply referred to as Washington, is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executive, and judicial, whose powers are vested by the U.S. Constitution in the Congress, the president and the federal courts, respectively. The powers and duties of these branches are further defined by acts of Congress, including the creation of executive departments and courts inferior to the Supreme Court.

The Constitution of the Republic of China is the fifth and current constitution of the Taiwan (ROC), ratified by the Kuomintang during the Constituent National Assembly session on 25 December 1946, in Nanjing, and adopted on 25 December 1947. The constitution, along with its Additional Articles, remains effective in ROC-controlled territories.

Violeta Barrios Torres de Chamorro is a Nicaraguan politician who served as President of Nicaragua from 1990 to 1997. She was the first and, to date, only woman to hold the position of president of Nicaragua.

The president of the Republic of Costa Rica is the head of state and head of government of Costa Rica. The president is currently elected in direct elections for a period of four years, which is not immediately renewable. Two vice presidents are elected in the same ticket with the president. The president appoints the Council of Ministers. Due to the abolition of the military of Costa Rica in 1948, the president is not a commander-in-chief, unlike the norm in most other countries, although the Constitution does describe him as commander-in-chief of the civil defense public forces.

The president of Burundi, officially the President of the Republic, is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Burundi. The president is also commander-in-chief of the National Defence Force. The office of the presidency was established when Michel Micombero declared Burundi a republic on 28 November 1966. The first constitution to specify the powers and duties of the president was the constitution of 1974 adopted in 1976. The constitution, written by Micombero, affirmed Micombero's position as the first president of Burundi. The powers of the president currently derive from the 2005 constitution implemented as a result of the 2000 Arusha Accords after the Burundian Civil War. The current president since 18 June 2020 is Évariste Ndayishimiye.

The President of Portugal - officially the President of the Portuguese Republic - is the head of state and highest office of Portugal.

Separation of powers is a political doctrine originating in the writings of Charles de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu in The Spirit of the Laws, in which he argued for a constitutional government with three separate branches, each of which would have defined abilities to check the powers of the others. This philosophy heavily influenced the writing of the United States Constitution, according to which the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial branches of the United States government are kept distinct in order to prevent abuse of power. This United States form of separation of powers is associated with a system of checks and balances.

Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Chadha, 462 U.S. 919 (1983), was a United States Supreme Court case ruling in 1983 that the one-house legislative veto violated the constitutional separation of powers.

The president of the Lebanese Republic is the head of state of Lebanon. The president is elected by the parliament for a term of six years, which is renewable once. By convention, the president is always a Maronite Christian who is at least 25 years old.

The Constitution of the Republic of Korea is the supreme law of South Korea. It was promulgated on July 17, 1948, and last revised on October 29, 1987.

The Government of Turkey is the national government of Turkey. It is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative democracy and a constitutional republic within a pluriform multi-party system. The term government can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Cabinet.

The Constitution of Uganda is the supreme law of Uganda. The fourth and current constitution was promulgated on 8 October 1995. It sanctions a republican form of government with a powerful President.

The Constitution of Uruguay is the supreme law of Uruguay. Its first version was written in 1830 and its last amendment was made in 2004.

The current Constitution of Mauritania was adopted on 12 July 1991. There have been several constitutions since Mauritania's independence in 1960.

The Constitution of the Philippines is the constitution or supreme law of the Republic of the Philippines. Its final draft was completed by the Constitutional Commission on October 12, 1986, and was ratified by a nationwide plebiscite on February 2, 1987.

Miriam Argüello Morales was a politician from Nicaragua. A lawyer by training, she was the first woman to become president of the National Assembly of Nicaragua, where she served as a deputy for 22 years. She was elected Assembly president in 1990, defeating Alfredo César Aguirre though he had the support of Nicaraguan President Violeta Chamorro. However, César prevailed the following year, replacing Argüello in 1991.

This glossary of American politics is a list of definitions of terms and phrases used in politics in the United States. The list includes terms specific to U.S. political systems, as well as concepts and ideologies that occur in other political systems but which nonetheless are frequently encountered in American politics.

References

Footnotes

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Merrill 1994 , p. 147.
↑ Merrill 1994 , pp. 147–148.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Merrill 1994 , p. 148.
↑ A quorum is half the total number of representatives, plus one.
↑ Merrill 1994 , pp. 148–149.
1 2 3 4 5 6 Merrill 1994 , p. 149.
↑ Merrill 1994 , pp. 149–150.
1 2 3 Merrill 1994 , p. 150.

Works cited

Merrill, Tim (1994). Nicaragua: a country study (3rd ed.). Washington, D.C.: Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. ISBN 0-8444-0831-X. OCLC 30623751.This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .

External links

Asamblea Nacional de Nicaragua (in Spanish)

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[m147-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Merrill 1994 , p. 147.

[2] Merrill 1994 , pp. 147–148.

[m148-3] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Merrill 1994 , p. 148.

[4] A quorum is half the total number of representatives, plus one.

[5] Merrill 1994 , pp. 148–149.

[m149-6] 1 2 3 4 5 6 Merrill 1994 , p. 149.

[7] Merrill 1994 , pp. 149–150.

[m150-8] 1 2 3 Merrill 1994 , p. 150.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

v t e Constitutions of states and dependencies in the Americas
North America Caribbean Central America Northern America South America
Sovereign states	Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Bahamas Barbados Belize Bolivia Brazil Canada Chile Colombia Costa Rica Cuba Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador El Salvador Grenada Guatemala Guyana Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Nicaragua Panama Paraguay Peru Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Suriname Trinidad and Tobago United States Uruguay Venezuela
Dependencies and other territories	Anguilla Aruba Bermuda Bonaire British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Curaçao Falkland Islands French Guiana Greenland Guadeloupe Martinique Montserrat Puerto Rico Saint Barthélemy Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saba Sint Eustatius Sint Maarten South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Turks and Caicos Islands US Virgin Islands