SUMMARY OF LIBERIA’S PARLIAMENT
The Liberian Legislature operates a bicameral structure – the House of Representatives (the lower house) and the Senate (Upper house). The House of Representatives is composed of 73 members who are directly elected by each county, with the seats apportioned based on each county’s population, to serve a term of 6 years. There are 9 (12.33%) women in the House of Representatives.
In the Liberian Senate, there are 30 seats which are represented by 2 Senators from the same county. The Senate comprises 2 women (6.67%) and 28 men who are directly elected to serve a 9-year term of office.
The House of Representatives is currently led by a Speaker, Bhofal Chambers, and a Chief Clerk, Mildred N. Sayon. The Senate on the other hand is presided over by the Vice-President of the Republic of Liberia, H. E Jewel Howard-Taylor, and The President Pro-Tempore, Albert Tugbe Chie.
The Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) has the highest number of seats, followed by the Unity Party (UP) and Independent as the third with the majority of members in the House of Representatives.
In October 2016, the House of Representatives passed the Equal Representation and Participation Bill, creating five seats for women, one for youth, and one for people with disabilities. However, the Ministry of Justice had not incorporated the changes into a new consolidated election law before the 2017 elections took place.