IFES Election Guide - Country Profile: Jordan

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Jordan
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Region: Middle East

Description of government structure:

Chief of State: King ABDALLAH II bin Al Hussein
Head of Government: Prime Minister Abdullah ENSOUR
Assembly: Jordan has a bicameral National Assembly (Majlis al-Umma) consisting of the Senate (Majlis al-Ayan) with 55 seats and the House of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwaab) with 150 seats.

Description of electoral system:

The King is hereditary head of state.
Prime Minister is appointed by the monarch.
In the Senate (Majlis al-Ayan) 55 members are appointed by the monarch to serve 4-year terms*. In the House of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwaab) 150 members are elected by a mixed system to serve 4-year terms.**

* Members must be former public officials or otherwise notable and at least 40 years of age.

** On June 22, 2012 a controversial electoral law enacted several changes to the country’s electoral system. First, the number of seats reserved for political party and coalition candidates in parliament was increased from 17 to 27. Second, a mixed electoral system was introduced, retaining the single non-transferable vote (SNTV) system in all 45 of Jordan's electoral constituencies. Out of these 45 constituencies,18 function as single-member districts. In addition, 27 seats for political parties were allocated through a national list. This gives voters 2 votes, one at the constituency level, and one at the nationwide level. The 2012 electoral law also did away with “virtual districts," electoral constituencies further divided into sub-districts. While voters chose among all candidates in a constituency, candidates registered in one virtual district each, and the plurality winner in each would win the respective seat. Third, the election law change increased the women’s quota from 12 to 15 seats, which go to the 15 female candidates with the highest votes nationwide, but not enough to win a seat in the direct election. Out of these 15 seats, 3 are reserved for women from Bedouin areas. Additionally, 12 out of 150 parliamentary seats are still reserved for Christian and Circassian candidates. These changes have overall increased size of the parliament increased from 120 to 150 members.