| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Chi Tshog / Parliament |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name (generic / translated) |
Gyelyong Tshogde / National Council |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
Tshogdu / National Assembly
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) (from/to) | 31 December 2007
29 January 2008 |
| Purpose of elections |
Elections were held for all the directly elected seats in the newly established National Council. |
The Election Commission
following a Royal Decree of 30 June 2007
declared that elections to the newly-established National Council
the Upper Chamber of the bicameral parliament
would be held in December
2007. They were subsequently set for 31 December. The National Council is a non-partisan body comprising 25 members
of whom 20 are directly elected while the remaining five are eminent persons nominated by the King.
Bhutan became a monarchy in 1907. In 2005
the then King Jigme Singye Wangchuck unveiled a draft constitution. His son
Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck
succeeded him in December 2006. Representatives of all 20 districts reviewed the draft constitution. Under the draft
the King remains the Head of State
but the new bicameral parliament can impeach him by a two-thirds majority vote. The prime minister
currently appointed by the King
will be elected by the new National Assembly.
On 31 July 2007
the National Assembly was dissolved with a view to elections due to be held on 24 March 2008. The draft constitution will then be presented to the new National Assembly for adoption.
In the December 2007 elections to the National Council
43 candidates contested 15 of the 20 seats.
On 31 December
55 per cent of the 270
000 registered voters in 15 of the 20 districts turned out at the polls. Elections were postponed in five constituencies
where there was either no candidate or only one. To be eligible
candidates need to hold a university degree. However
although the literacy rate in Bhutan is estimated at 60 per cent
only 16
000 of the countrys 634
000 inhabitants (see note) are university graduates. Voting went off without any major incident. The results for 15 of the elective seats were announced on 1 January 2008. Eleven of the 15 members were under 40 years old; three women were elected.
Elections for the five remaining seats were held on 29 January 2008. In three constituencies contested by only one candidate
voters cast either a "yes" or "no" ballot. Heavy snow and cold weather hit the country
apparently accounting for the relatively lower turnout of 42 per cent. On the following day
the Election Commission endorsed the five new members. One woman was elected
bringing the total number of women to four out of 20 elected members.
On 30 March 2008
the King appointed another five members including two women.
On 29 April
the National Council held its first session and elected Mr. Namgye Penjore
an elected member from the Punakha constituency
as its Speaker.
Note:
Source: National Population and Housing Census of Bhutan
2005. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 31 December 2007 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
269'337
147'789 (54.87%)
147'789 |
|
Notes
|
Statistics for the elections on 29 January 2008
Number of registered electors: 43
480
Voters: 18
155 (41.75%)
Valid votes: 18
155
In Bhutan
only the valid votes are counted. The number of votes (voters) thus equals the number of valid votes. |
| Distribution of votes |
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
19
6
24.00%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Distribution of seats according to political group: Not applicable - non-partisan elections.
Four women were directly elected and two others were appointed by the King.
Sources:
- http://www.election-bhutan.org.bt/
- Bhutanese Election Commission (14.01.2008)
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs (08.01.2008
10.01.2008
17.01.2008
30.01.2008
16.04.2008) |
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
