The people of Bhutan will vote in the primary round of the third parliamentary elections on 15th September. For the young democracy, it is an important landmark, giving them an opportunity to reaffirm their commitment to a representative system of governance.
Bhutanese democracy and electoral process are unique in several ways. The Constitution declares Bhutan to be a sovereign Kingdom, where the form of government is that of a Democratic Constitutional Monarchy. The Parliament – Chi Tshog has two Houses: National Council (Gyelyong Tshogde) and National Assembly (Tshogdu), both with a five-year term. The National Council has 25 members of which 20 are elected while five are nominated by the King; candidates contest the Council elections as independents and not as party nominees. However, elections to the National Assembly which has 47 members are held on party lines. The first elections to the Parliament were held in 2008 and the second in 2013.
The Election Commission of Bhutan (ECB) has, over the last decade, put in place clear-cut guidelines, rules and regulations for conducting elections, as per Constitutional directives and the Election Act, 2008. While Article 15 of the Constitution details political parties, Article 16 enumerates public campaign financing.
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