Who is a Member of the National Assembly?
The Constitution of Zimbabwe provides for the election of 350 Members of Parliament. Parliament consists of the Senate and the National Assembly and each has 80 and 270 Members of Parliament respectively. Members of Parliament perform legislative, representative and oversight functions. They are elected for a 5 year term which runs from the date on which the President-Elect is sworn in and assumes office. Parliament stands dissolved at midnight on the day before the first polling day in the next general election.
Qualifications and Disqualifications
A person is qualified for election as a Member of the National Assembly if:
- He or she is a registered voter and is at least 21 years of age.
- A person is disqualified for election as a Member of the National Assembly is he or she is disqualified as a voter or, within five years before the election, he or she vacated a seat in the Senate or the National Assembly through having been convicted of an offence.
- A person is disqualified for election at a by-election in the National Assembly if he or she is a Member of Parliament.
