At stake in this election:       

• The 33 seats in the Parliament (Nitijela)

For a list of current members of the Nitijela elected in this election, see here.

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Christopher LOEAK
• Head of Government: President Christopher LOEAK
• Assembly: Marshall Islands has a unicameral Parliament (Nitijela) with 33 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by parliament to serve a 4-year term.
• In the Parliament (Nitijela) 33 members are elected by plurality vote in multi-member constituencies to serve 4-year terms.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Independents
  • Seats won in last election: 33

*Marshall Islands traditionally has not had political parties, although there are groupings which compete: the United Democratic Party and Aelon Kein Ad. For a full list of candidates in this elections, click here.

Last election:

• The last election for the Parliament (Nitijela) was held on 21 November 2011. 39,994 voters participated in the election.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 72,191 (July 2015 est.)70,983[1]
• Registered voters: 39,994 (2011)[2]

Gender Data:

• Female Population: 34,651 (July 2015 est.) [3]
• Are the Marshall Islands a signatory to CEDAW: N/A[4]
• Have the Marshall Islands ratified CEDAW: Yes (2 March 2006)[5]
• Gender Quota: No[6]
• Female Candidates in this election: Yes
• Number of Female Legislators: 1 (3.03%) of 33 seats in the Parliament (Nitijela)
• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: N/A[7]
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A[8]

Disability Data:

• Are the Marshall Islands a signatory to CRPD: N/A[9]
• Have the Marshall Islands ratified CRPD: Yes (17 March 2015)[10]
• Population with a disability: 10,829 (2015 est.)[11]

[1] https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/rm.html

[2] http://www.electionguide.org/elections/id/1612/  

[3] https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/rm.html

[4] https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-8&chapter=4&lang=en

[5] https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-8&chapter=4&lang=en

[6] http://www.quotaproject.org/uid/search.cfm#

[7] http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/table-1-human-development-index-and-its-components

[8] http://genderindex.org/countries

[9] https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=iv-15&chapter=4&lang=en

[10] https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=iv-15&chapter=4&lang=en

[11] http://www.electionaccess.org/en/resources/countries/mh/all/