National Assembly (Bhutan)
Speaker of the National Assembly
Round 1: Party-only first-past-the-post|
Round 2: Two-party first-past-the-post
|15 September 2018 and 18 October 2018|
|Gyelyong Tshokhang, Thimphu|
|Official Website of the National Assembly of Bhutan|
|This article is part of a series on the|
politics and government of
Current National Assembly
The current National Assembly has 47 members, the first of which were elected in the first ever general elections on March 24, 2008. Jigme Thinley's Druk Phuensum Tshogpa (DPT) Party won a landslide victory, securing 45 seats. The People's Democratic Party (PDP) won the other two, but its leader Sangay Ngedup lost the election in his constituency.
Under the 2008 Constitution, the National Assembly consists of a maximum of 55 members directly elected by the citizens of constituencies within each Dzongkhag (District). (Art. 12) Under this single-winner voting system, each constituency is represented by a single National Assembly member; each of the 20 Dzongkhags must be represented by between 2–7 members. Constituencies are reapportioned every 10 years. (Art. 12, §§ 1–2) The National Assembly meets at least twice a year, and elects a Speaker and Deputy Speaker from among its members. Members and candidates are allowed to hold political party affiliation.
The National Assembly was originally decreed in 1953 by King Jigme Dorji Wangchuck. The National Assembly began as a unicameral parliament within the King's framework for democratization. In 1971, King Jigme Dorji empowered the National Assembly to remove him or any of his successors with a two-thirds majority. The procedure for abdication remains a part of Bhutan's Constitution of 2008, with the addition of a three-fourth majority in a joint sitting of Parliament (i.e., including the National Council) to confirm the involuntary abdication as well as a national referendum to finalize it. (Art. 2)
The 47 members of the National Assembly are elected from single-member constituencies. Primary elections are held in which voters cast votes for parties. The top two parties are then able to field candidates in the main round of voting, in which members are elected using first-past-the-post voting.
The 47 constituencies of the National Assembly of Bhutan were:
|Thimphu||North Thimphu Throm-Kawang-Lingshi-Naro-Soe|
|South Thimphu Throm-Chang-Dagala-Genye-Mewang|
- Politics of Bhutan
- List of political parties in Bhutan
- Elections in Bhutan
- Parliament of Bhutan
- Bhutanese legislation
- Majumdar, Bappa (March 27, 2008). "CORRECTED: Bhutan corrects poll results, opposition shrinks". Reuters. Retrieved 2009-05-10.
- "Bhutan votes for status quo", France 24, March 24, 2008
- "Constitution of the Kingdom of Bhutan (English)" (PDF). Government of Bhutan. 2008-07-18. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2010-10-13.
- "Bhutan's Election Commission completes polls process, hands over MP list to King". DNA India. Retrieved 14 July 2013.
- Electoral system IPU
- "Official website of the National Assembly of Bhutan". Retrieved 2008-04-16.