At stake in this election:

• 110 seats in the House of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwaab)

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: King ABDALLAH II bin Al Hussein
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Ali Abul RAGHEB
• Assembly: Jordan has a bicameral National Assembly (Majlis al-'Umma) consisting of the House of Notables (Majlis al-Ayan) with 55 seats and the House of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwaab) with 110 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The King is hereditary head of state.
• In the House of Notables (Majlis al-Ayan) 55 members are appointed by the monarch to serve 4-year terms. In the House of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwaab) 110 members are elected by popular vote via proportional representation to serve 4-year terms.**

** Six seats are reserved for women and are allocated by a special electoral panel if no women are elected.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: Islamic Action Front (IAF)*
  • Leader: Hamzeh MANSUR
  • Seats won in this House of Deputies election: 17
• Indepedents**
  • Seats won in this House of Deputies election: 87

* The IAF is the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan.

** Most independents are representatives of major tribes and families loyal to the King.

Last parliamentary election:

• The last election to the House of Deputies was held on November 4, 1997.

Election Note:

• King ABDALLAH dismissed the parliament in June 2001 when its four-year term ended. However, new elections were postponed 15 months for procedural reasons and due to unrest in neighboring Israel. This election was the first under a new electoral code that raised the number of seats from 80 to 110, lowered the voting age to 18, and reserved six seats for women.

Population and voter registration:

• Population: 5,042,538 (2003)
• Registered Voters: 2,325,496 (2003)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 2,425,143 (2003)

·         Is Jordan a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (3 December 1980)

·         Has Jordan ratified CEDAW: Yes (1 July 1992)

·         Gender Quota: Yes

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 6 (following the 2003 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 80 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: High (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Jordan a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has Jordan ratified CRPD: Yes (31 March 2008)

·         Population with a disability: 756,380 (est.)