Making Sense of Kuwait’s Parliamentary Election Results: Change or Continued Gridlock?

In the latest National Assembly elections, ordered after Crown Prince Meshal al-Ahmed al-Jaber al-Sabah dissolved the previous Parliament, voters in Kuwait chose change, sending 27 new members to the 50-member assembly. This followed a prolonged period of gridlock between the Cabinet, appointed by the royal family, and the National Assembly. Opposition candidates, including Islamists, made considerable gains raising pressure on the government, which was hoping to ease tensions with the legislature and press on with economic reforms. Additionally, two women were elected after the 2020 elections saw the sole female legislator lose her seat.

Will the latest round of parliamentary elections ease the political standoff or increase tensions within the assembly, the ruling family, and public debate? How will the new Parliament affect the government’s ability to pass sensitive economic reforms? How will Islamist gains affect social reforms and the protection of women’s rights and freedoms? Do these results increase the chances that the National Assembly will be dissolved again by royal decree?

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