Elections in Yemen
Encyclopedia
Yemen elects on national level a head of state
(the president
) and a legislature
. The president is elected for a seven year term by the people. The Assembly of Representatives of Yemen
(Majlis al-Nuwaab) has 301 members, elected for a six year term in single-seat constituencies.
Yemen is usually considered a dominant-party state
with the General People's Congress
in power. Opposition parties are allowed, but are widely considered to have no real chance of gaining power.
Yemen has universal suffrage for those age 18 and older. The constitution provides that the president be elected by popular vote from at least two candidates endorsed by parliament.
In 1999 the first nationwide direct presidential election was held, giving Ali Abdallah Salih, the leader of the General People’s Congress (GPC), a five-year term, which was extended to seven years in 2001. President Salih was reelected in September 2006 with 77 percent of the popular vote. The electorate also elects the parliament every six years, most recently in April 2003. The next parliamentary elections are to be held in 2011. Although the various 2006 elections (presidential and local) were deemed by international observers to be generally open and competitive, there were reports of irregularities, such as underage and duplicate voting and the use of state funds to support GPC candidates.
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
(the president
President of Yemen
The President of the Republic of Yemen is the head of state of Yemen.Under the Constitution of Yemen, the president is also the supreme commander of the armed forces and head of the executive branch of the Yemeni government....
) and a legislature
Legislature
A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...
. The president is elected for a seven year term by the people. The Assembly of Representatives of Yemen
Assembly of Representatives of Yemen
The Assembly of Representatives is the legislature of Yemen. The Assembly has 301 members, elected for a six year term in single-seat constituencies.-See also:* List of Speakers of the Assembly of Representatives of Yemen...
(Majlis al-Nuwaab) has 301 members, elected for a six year term in single-seat constituencies.
Yemen is usually considered a dominant-party state
Dominant-party system
A dominant-party system, or one-party dominant system, is a system where there is "a category of parties/political organizations that have successively won election victories and whose future defeat cannot be envisaged or is unlikely for the foreseeable future." A wide range of parties have been...
with the General People's Congress
General People's Congress
The General People's Congress is the ruling political party in Yemen.Was founded in August 24, 1982 in Sana'a, YemenAt the last legislative elections, 27 April 2003, the party won 58.0% of the popular vote and 238 out of 301 seats in the Assembly of Representatives of Yemen....
in power. Opposition parties are allowed, but are widely considered to have no real chance of gaining power.
Yemen has universal suffrage for those age 18 and older. The constitution provides that the president be elected by popular vote from at least two candidates endorsed by parliament.
In 1999 the first nationwide direct presidential election was held, giving Ali Abdallah Salih, the leader of the General People’s Congress (GPC), a five-year term, which was extended to seven years in 2001. President Salih was reelected in September 2006 with 77 percent of the popular vote. The electorate also elects the parliament every six years, most recently in April 2003. The next parliamentary elections are to be held in 2011. Although the various 2006 elections (presidential and local) were deemed by international observers to be generally open and competitive, there were reports of irregularities, such as underage and duplicate voting and the use of state funds to support GPC candidates.