KUWAIT: Voters in Kuwait's fifth constituency head to polling stations tomorrow in the by-election, the 14th in Kuwait's history, to select a representative following the vacancy of a seat occupied by Bader Al-Dahoum. A by-election is held in line with article 84 of the constitution, which stipulates that elections are held within two months following the vacancy of a parliamentary seat. The mandate of the new member shall last until the end of that of their predecessor.
Since the 1963 legislative elections, by-elections were held for different reasons: Death of a member, resignation or annulment of results. The first was when Sulaiman Ahmad Al-Haddad from the 6th constituency resigned from the National Assembly on Oct 27, 1964. By-elections were held on Dec 23, bringing Ali Al-Omar to the house.
Eight MPs resigned on Dec 7, 1965 in protest against the endorsement of what they considered "laws curbing freedoms". They were Ahmad Al-Khatib, Jassem Al-Qatami, Rashed Al-Tawheed, Sami Al-Munayyes, Sulaiman Al-Mutawa, Abdulrazaq Al-Khaled, Ali Al-Omar and Yaaqoub Al-Humaidhi. By-elections were held on Feb 9, 1966, resulting in the victory of Ahmad Al-Abduljalil, Nayef Al-Khulaifi, Rashed Al-Hajri, Sulaiman Al-Thuwaikh, Abdulaziz Al-Masaeed, Ghannam Al-Jumhour, Mohammad Al-Wazzan and Nasser Al-Muaili.
MP Mudhi Al-Nazzal resigned from the parliament on Oct 29, 1966, and a by-election was held resulting in the victory of Khaled Al-Meseb. Seven MPs resigned during the second legislative term in 1967: Khaled Al-Fuhaid, Rashed Al-Farhan, Abdulrazzaq Al-Zaid, Abdulaziz Al-Saqer, Ali Al-Omar, Mohammad Al-Kharafi and Mohammad Al-Adsani. Their resignations were in protest of the outcome of the elections. By-elections were held on May 10, 1967, bringing Ibrahim Al-Mailam, Ahmad Al-Abduljalil, Ahmad Al-Khulaifi, Khaled Al-Tahous, Khalaf Al-Otaibi, Rashed Ismail, and Ghanem Al-Amiri to the house.
MP Ali Thunayyan Al-Athaina who represented the 9th constituency passed away during the third legislative term. The seat was announced vacant on Dec 11, 1971. By-elections were held on Feb 9, 1972, resulting in the victory of Faleh Al-Suwaileh. On April 7, 1982, the sixth by-election was held in the 14th constituency following the death of MP Nasser Al-Osaimi. Humoud Al-Jabri won the vote.
On Dec 29, 1992, the constitutional court annulled voting in the 14th and 16th constituencies, an unprecedented verdict. By-elections on Feb 15, 1993 resulted in the victory of Mubarak Al-Khrainej and Humoud Al-Jabri, the very MPs whose seats were contested. The 8th by-election was held on Feb 19, 1997 after candidate Saadoun Al-Otaibi contested results at the constitutional court. However, Waleed Al-Jeri and Khaled Al-Adwa won elections and returned to their seats.
MP Khaled Al-Adwa contested the voting results of the 21st constituency in the 9th legislative term. The constitutional court ruled in his favor and annulled the membership of Saadoun Al-Otaibi. By-elections were held on Jan 24, 2000 and Adwa won. On Dec 7, 2000, the 10th by-election was held following the passing of Sami Al-Munayyes. Jamal Al-Omar won.
Five MPs resigned from the house during the 14th legislative term: Riyadh Al-Adasani, Abdulkarim Al-Kandari, Hussain Al-Quwiaan, Ali Al-Rashed and Safa Al-Hashem. They resigned due to a dispute over an interpellation against the prime minister. The house approved the resignations on May 15, 2014. By-elections were held on June 26, in which Ahmad Al-Qedheebi, Ahmad Lari, Abdullah Maayouf, Fares Al-Otaibi and Mohammad Al-Barrak won seats.
On Feb 20, 2016, a by-election was held following the demise of MP Nabil Al-Fadhl, and Ali Al-Khamees won the seat. On March 16, 2019, a by-election was held in the 2nd and 3rd constituencies following the vacancy of seats occupied by Jamaan Al-Harbash and Waleed Al-Tabtabaei. Bader Al-Mulla and Abdullah Al-Kandari won the elections. - KUNA