| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Ulsyn Ikh Khural / State Great Hural |
| Structure of parliament |
Unicameral |
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
29 June 2008 |
| Timing and scope of renewal |
Elections were held for all the seats in the State Great Hural on the normal expiry of the members' term of office. |
The June 2008 elections were the fifth to be held since the introduction of the multi-party system in 1990.
In May 2005, the country elected the then Speaker Nambar Enkhbayar of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) as the new President. The formerly communist MPRP, which had ruled the country since independence from China in 1921, had regained power in 2000 after four years of rule by the Motherland-Democracy Coalition (MDC).
In the last parliamentary elections, held in June 2004, the number of MPRP seats had dropped from 72 to 37. An ally, the Republican Party (MRP), took one seat. The MDC (comprising the Democratic Party (DP) and two small parties, see note) obtained 35 seats. The three remaining seats went to independents allied with the MDC. The MPRP and MDC camps, which held the same number of seats in parliament, subsequently formed a first-ever coalition government, with the DP's Mr. Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj elected as Prime Minister in August. The coalition government remained fragile and divided, however, as witnessed when the MPRP sought to expand the civil service, which the MDC saw as an increased burden on taxpayers.
In late 2005, DP Deputy Chairman Mr. Lamjavyn Gündalai left the DP and formed the People's Party (PP), blaming Prime Minister Elbegdorj for slow economic growth. In January 2006, four other DP members defected to the MPRP camp, and the MPRP withdrew its support for the coalition government. On 25 January, MPRP Chairman Mr. Miyeegombyn Enkhbold was elected as the new Prime Minister and formed a MPRP-led 'national solidarity' government that included the DP dissidents. In November 2007, following his defeat in the MPRP's chairmanship election to Mr. Sanj Bayar the previous month, Mr. Enkhbold resigned. Mr. Bayar was elected as Prime Minister in late November, pledging to "uproot corruption and bureaucracy".
The elections were contested by 12 political parties, including the MPRP and the DP. Prior to the 2008 elections, the MPRP government was dogged by allegations of official corruption and misconduct. In May, Mr. Gündalai left the PP and re-joined the DP and most PP members ran under the DP banner.
With more than 10 per cent of Mongolia's 2.7 million inhabitants living on less than one US dollar per day, according to figures from the United Nations, modernizing the country's agriculture-based economy has been a top priority.
Prime Minister Bayar's MPRP promised greater prosperity through 10 per cent economic growth and boosting GDP per capita to US$5,000 by 2012 (from US$2,900 in 2007). The MPRP also promised to improve the welfare system and provide subsidies to families, single mothers and the poor. In April, on the occasion of its 18th anniversary, the DP published a ten-article development policy document, pledging to work for human development and tackle poverty and corruption.
A key debate in the run-up to the 2008 elections was how to make the best use of recently discovered mineral deposits in the country, including copper, gold and coal. The MPRP advocated maintaining government control over these resources, while the DP called for private sector involvement. Both parties promised to use budget surpluses from the mining industry to pay for public expenditures. Under the current law, the government can take up to a 50 percent interest in mineral deposits discovered using State funds.
During the election campaign, the General Election Committee admitted that the electoral roll contained over 116,000 people listed twice under different addresses, and pledged to clean up the roll before polling day.
On the day of the election, over 74 percent of some 1.6 million registered voters turned out at the polls, with no major incidents reported. A 16-member international observer panel declared the elections largely free and fair.
As a result of the newly introduced multi-member constituency system, final results were delayed. But after preliminary results gave 47 seats to the MPRP and 27 to the DP, the former declared victory.
The DP accused the MPRP of rigging the elections and claimed that some MPRP supporters voted twice. Large-scale street protests turned violent: MPRP headquarters were set on fire, at least five people were killed and hundreds injured. Prime Minister Bayar accused the DP of inciting the violence. On 1 July, President Enkhbayar declared a four-day state of emergency in the capital, allowing the police to use "necessary force to crack down on criminals". The DP called for a re-vote in several districts.
Prior to the first session of the State Great Hural on 23 July, the election of 66 members (39 from the MPRP, 25 from the DP, one Civil Will Republican Party member and one independent) had been confirmed. However, due to a boycott by the DP, parliament failed four times to reach the quorum of two thirds of members required to swear in the new members. Parliament was finally able to resume its work on 28 August after the quorum was achieved. On 1 September, Mr. Damdin Demberel (MPRP) was elected as the new Speaker.
On 11 September, the State Great Hural elected Mr. Bayar (MPRP) as Prime Minister. On 17 September, it approved a new coalition government comprising the MPRP and the DP.
Note:
The two parties were the Mongolian New Democratic Socialist Party (MNDSP) and the Civil Will Republican Party (CWRP). |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 29 June 2008 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
1'534'074
1'139'984 (74.31%)
|
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of votes |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political group |
Candidates |
Votes |
|
|
% of votes |
|
|
| Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) |
|
914'037 |
|
|
|
|
|
| Democratic Party (DP) |
|
701'641 |
|
|
|
|
|
| Civil Will Republican Party (CWRP) |
|
34'319 |
|
|
|
|
|
| Independents |
|
60'320 |
|
|
|
|
|
| Green Party |
|
24'806 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total of seats
|
|
|
|
|
| Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) |
45
|
|
|
|
|
| Democratic Party (DP) |
28
|
|
|
|
|
| Civil Will Republican Party (CWRP) |
1
|
|
|
|
|
| Independents |
1
|
|
|
|
|
| Green Party |
1
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
73
3
3.95%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
31 to 40 years
41 to 50 years
51 to 60 years
61 to 70 years
|
10
41
23
1
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
Economist
Architect, surveyor, engineer
Legal profession
Education profession
Research/sciences
Journalism, broadcasting, media
Physician, dentist
Agriculture/farming
Armed services/Police
Writer, literary, artist
Civil service and local authority administration
Trade union official
|
20
18
13
7
7
3
2
1
1
1
1
1
|
| Comments |
Sources:
- State Great Hural (23.07.2008, 05.09.2008, 29.09.2008, 31.10.2008, 09.12.2008, 20.01.2009, 06.03.2009, 29.10.2009, 26.02.2010)
- http://www.gec.gov.mn
- http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn |
|
