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Parliament name (generic / translated) Mejlis / Assembly More photos  >>> Structure of parliament Unicameral Affiliation to the IPU No Affiliation date(s) LEADERSHIP President Akja Tajiyewna Nurberdiyewa (F)   Notes Re-elected on 9 Jan. 2009. Secretary General Enegul B. Dollayeva (F)   COMPOSITION Members (statutory / current number) 125 / 125 PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN More statistics  >>> Women (current number) 21 (16.80%) Mode of designation Directly elected 125 Term 5 years Last renewal dates 14 December 2008 (View details) CONTACT INFORMATION Address Mejlis of Turkmenistan Neutral Turkmenistan str, 17 ASHGABAT 744000 (Export mailing lists) Phone (99312) 35 31 25 39 59 58 Fax (99312) 35 31 47 E-mail Website

Parliament name (generic / translated) Mejlis / Assembly Structure of parliament Unicameral LEGAL FRAMEWORK Electoral law 13 May 1994 Mode of designation Directly elected 125 Constituencies 125 single-member constituencies. Voting system Majority: Single-Member Plurality Systems ("first past the post") A candidate is declared elected if he/she obtains at least 50 % of the votes cast in each constituency. Vacancies arising between general elections are filled through by-elections held within three months, unless the vacancy occurs less than one year before the end of the legislature's term. Voting is not compulsory. Voter requirements - age: 18 years - Turkmen citizenship - residence in district of registration - disqualifications: insanity, imprisonment, preventive detention CANDIDATES Eligibility Qualified electors - age: 25 years - Turkmen citizenship - ineligibility: imprisonment Incompatibilities - membership of the Cabinet - certain high public offices - judge or public prosecutor Candidacy requirements - nominations 45 to 30 days before the elections - candidatures submitted by legally registered political parties, public associations and organizations or by assemblies of citizens of at least 200 voters residing in the same constituency. Absolute majority backing required for each name to go forward.

Parliament name (generic / translated) Mejlis / Assembly Structure of parliament Unicameral BACKGROUND Dates of election / renewal (from/to) 14 December 2008 Timing and scope of renewal Elections were held for all seats in the Assembly, one year before they were constitutionally due. On 12 September 2008, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov announced that the elections to the Assembly would be held on 14 December 2008. They were constitutionally due by December 2009. In the previous elections held in December 2004 and January 2005, all candidates were reportedly "hand-picked" and personally approved by the then President Saparmurat Niyazov. The country's only legal party, the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan (DPT), took all the 50 seats at stake. In February 2007, former deputy prime minister Berdimuhamedov (DPT) was elected President, succeeding Mr. Niyazov who had passed away in December 2006 after serving for 16 years. Mr. Berdimuhamedov was unanimously elected Chairman of the People's Council (Khalk Maslahaty), the 'supreme representative body of popular power' comprising over 2,000 top officials and elders. The new President pledged to bring about a "new revival" in the country. He introduced a series of reforms including constitutional amendments, adopted by the People's Council on 26 September 2008, which then unanimously voted to dissolve itself and transfer its powers to the President and the Assembly. The constitutional amendments allow individuals nominated from legally registered political parties and political movements, as well as "public associations" and assemblies of voters, to run for elections. In practice, the nomination process reportedly remains closely controlled by the government. The amendments also raised the statutory number of members of the Assembly to 125. The Assembly is once again vested with the power to amend and adopt the Constitution - which had been removed in 2003 - and now has the power to call referenda and presidential and parliamentary elections, ratify international treaties and address issues of border delimitation. No new parties had been formed before 14 November 2008, the deadline for nominations. Consequently, only the members of the DPT and other entities under the National Revival Movement were eligible. As was the case in the 2007 presidential elections, the Republican Party of Turkmenistan, the exiled opposition party, was not allowed to field any candidates. Also barred from the elections was Mr. Gurbandurdy Durdykuliev, who had been incarcerated in a psychiatric clinic between 2004 and 2006 after requesting permission to hold a political rally. 287 candidates contested the 2008 elections. Apart from small meetings held by the DPT, no visible election campaigns were reported. In late October, the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda (CCER) announced that Turkmen citizens living abroad would be allowed to vote in the elections. On 14 December 2008, 93.87 per cent of the 2.7 million registered voters turned out at the polls. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) chose not to send a full-fledged observer mission, arguing that the country's political context did not provide for genuine competition. OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) sent five election experts but did not make an official assessment of the election day proceedings. The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) declared that the elections were "competitive and transparent". On 22 December 2008, a list of 123 elected candidates was published. It did not contain their party affiliation. Elected candidates included senior officials of the DPT, tax officials, teachers and other civil servants. On 28 December 2008, a run-off election was held in one constituency where no candidate had secured the required majority. A by-election took place on 8 February 2009 in another constituency to replace a candidate who had not taken up his seat for family reasons. The newly elected Assembly held its first session on 9 January 2009 and re-elected Ms. Akja Tajiyewna Nurberdiyewa as its Speaker. STATISTICS Voter turnout Round no 1 14 December 2008 Number of registered electors Voters Blank or invalid ballot papers Valid votes 2'763'993 2'594'658 (93.87%) Notes Distribution of votes Round no 1 Political group Candidates Votes % of votes Distribution of seats Round no 1 Political Group Total of seats Distribution of seats according to sex Men Women Percent of women 104 21 16.80% Distribution of seats according to age Distribution of seats according to profession Comments Source: Turkmenistan Embassy to Austria (16.03.2009)

Parliament name (generic / translated) Mejlis / Assembly Structure of parliament Unicameral APPOINTMENT AND TERM OF OFFICE Title Chairman of the Mejlis (Parliament) Term - duration: 5 years (term of House) - reasons for interruption of the term: resignation, decision of the Mejlis, death, dissolution of the Parliament Appointment - elected by the Mejlis at the first sitting of the newly convened Mejlis - after Members' mandates are validated Eligibility - a candidacy for the post is proposed among the Deputies of the Mejlis and discussed at the meeting of the Mejlis itself Voting system - formal vote by secret ballot - the Mejlis elects a Committee of tellers to conduct the election and to determine the results thereof - each Deputy votes personnally; the Committee of tellers counts the vote and prepares a protocol which is approved at the Mejlis session - should more than 2 candidates be nominated for the post and none of them receive the necessary number of votes to be elected, a run-off is held between the two candidates who have received the highest number of votes - absolute majority is required (more than one half of the votes of the number of Deputies) Procedures / results - the Chairman of the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda presides over the Mejlis during the voting - the Committee of tellers supervises the voting - the Committee of tellers announces the results without any delay - the results cannot be challenged, but if mistakes in the procedure and technique of voting are detected, a new vote may be held if the Mejlis so decides STATUS Status - at the instruction of the President of Turkmenistan, the Chairman of the Mejlis performs certain of the President of the Mejlis' duties as provided for by the Constitution - President's powers are transferred to the Chairman until a new President is elected - represents the Mejlis with the Khalk maslakhaty (People's Council), the President and other state bodies and public associations - represents the Mejlis in international bodies - in the absence of the Chairman, the Vice-Chairman can assume his/her role and functions Board - the Presidium consists of the Chairman of the Mejlis, the Vice-Chairman and the chairmen of the committees - meetings are convened as necessary by the Chairman - have a quorum when at least 2/3 of the Members are presents - is a collective body Material facilities - salary - official car FUNCTIONS Organization of parliamentary business - organizes the debates - examines the admissibility of bills and amendments - refers texts to a committee for study - verifies the admissibility of request for setting up committees and/or committees of enquiry, proposes or decides on the setting up of such committees Chairing of public sittings - decides to open, adjourn and close sittings by putting these questions to a vote - ensures respect for provisions of the Constitution and Standing Orders, according the Law - can make announcements concerning the Mejlis - is responsible for discipline within the Mejlis - establishes the list of speakers, gives and withdraws permission to speak - amendments are discussed and adopted, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure - checks the quorum - authenticates the adopted texts and the records of debates - interprets the rules or other regulations governing the life of the Mejlis Special powers - appoints and dismisses officials of the Mejlis services - makes a proposal to the Presidium concerning the structure of Mejlis services - is responsible for relations with foreign Parliaments - is responsible for safety, and in this capacity, can call the police in the event of disturbance in the Chamber Speaking and voting rights, other functions - takes the floor in legislative debates - provides guidelines for the interpretation or completion of the text under discussion, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure - takes part in voting - may propose bills or amendments

This page was last updated on 24 March 2009
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