| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Jirga / National Assembly |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name (generic / translated) |
Meshrano Jirga / House of Elders |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
Wolesi Jirga / House of the People
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
22 January 2011 |
| Purpose of elections |
Renewal of the 34 members appointed by the President. |
The statutory number of members of the House of Elders is three times the number of existing provinces (currently 34) and comprises the following members:
- 68 indirectly elected members: These include one representative from each of the 34 Provincial Councils, serving a four-year term; and one representative from each of the 34 local District Councils, serving a three-year term; and
- 34 appointed members: appointed by the President for a five-year term.
On 20 August 2009, elections to the Provincial Councils were held in parallel with presidential elections. As in 2005, elections to the District Councils were not held. The seats reserved for the District Councils will continue to be filled by the representatives of the Provincial Councils until District Council elections are held.
On 20 February 2010, 68 representatives (two from each of the 34 Provincial Councils), including 11 women, were elected.
On 22 January 2011, President Hamid Karzai appointed 34 members, including 17 women. Following the 2011 renewal, the House of Elders comprises 28 women out of a total of 102 members. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Distribution of votes |
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
74
28
27.45%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Following the 2011 renewal, the House of Elders comprises 28 women out of a total of 102 members. Eleven women were indirectly elected while 17 were appointed by the President.
Source: House of Elders (01.03.2011) |
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
