Kuwait’s parliamentary elections set for June 6

Voters will head to the polls for the third time in three years after parliament was dissolved this week

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Kuwait has set June 6 as national election day, state news agency Kuna reported, two days after the Gulf state’s parliament was dissolved by royal decree.

The parliament was reinstated only in March based on a Constitutional Court ruling after a previous dissolution.

Kuwait’s Crown Prince Sheikh Meshal Al Sabah last month said the legislature would be dissolved and elections would be held in the coming months.

A prolonged struggle between the government and the elected parliament has hampered fiscal reforms.

The parliament, first elected in 2020, was dissolved last year in a bid to end the feuding. A vote was held in September in which the opposition made gains.

But the Constitutional Court in March annulled those results and restored the previous assembly.

Kuwait’s constitution states elections for a new parliament must be held within two months of the date of dissolution.

Should this not materialise, the dissolved parliament is restored to full constitutional authority and reassembles immediately.

After the official dissolution by decree on Monday, several high-profile political figures signalled they would start campaigning for the coming elections, including National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al Ghanim.

Formal political parties are banned in Kuwait but its legislature has more influence than similar bodies in other Gulf monarchies.

Political stability tends to be determined by the level of co-operation between the government and parliament.

The poll on June 6 will be Kuwait’s third in 30 months and its 10th since 2006.

Updated: May 04, 2023, 4:57 AM