The Nationa; Democratic Alliance announced that it will contest the elections after boycotting the December 2012 vote. However, other liberal parties, together with Islamist and nationalist groups said they would boycott the fresh elections
Kuwait has one of the most empowered parliaments in the Gulf region, but constant political tension has crippled its work
Parliament of Kuwait
The National Assembly, known as the Majlis Al-Umma ("House of the Nation")is the legislature of Kuwait which has 50 Members elected for a 4-year term
Currently there are five geographically distributed electoral districts. Every eligible citizen is entitled to four votes, though one may choose to only cast one vote. The ten candidates with the most votes in each district win seats
2013 Kuwaiti General Election Results
Voter turnout was an estimated 52.5%, which was higher than expected despite an opposition boycott.
Liberal and tribal groups have emerged the main winners by securing 3 and 24-seatsrespectively in the National Assembly.Liberal MPs, who were not represented in the previous parliament, have gained three seats, while tribal groups maintained their 24 seats
Shia candidates won only 8 seats in the 50-member parliament, compared with 17 seats in Dec 2012 elections.Observers say the election represents a blow to Shia MPs, who in December won their biggest tally to date. Shia form 30% of the country's 1.2 million population.
Dec 2012 Kuwaiti General Election
Six weeks before the December 2012 elections, the electoral law was changed to reduce the number of votes voters could cast from four to one. The changes were rejected by opposition groups, claiming that it would allow the government to manipulate the elections
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