Thedissolution of alegislative assembly (orparliament) is the simultaneous termination of service of all of its members, in anticipation that a successive legislative assembly will reconvene later with possibly different members. In ademocracy, the new assembly is chosen by ageneral election. Dissolution is distinct on the one hand from abolition of the assembly, and on the other hand from itsadjournment orprorogation, or the ending of alegislative session, any of which begins a period of inactivity after which it is anticipated that the same members will reassemble. For example, the "second session of the fifth parliament" could be followed by the "third session of the fifth parliament" after a prorogation, but would be followed by the "first session of the sixth parliament" after a dissolution.
In most Continental European countries, dissolution does not have immediate effect – that is, a dissolution merely triggers an election, but the old assembly itself continues its existing term and its members remain in office until the new assembly convenes for the first time. In those systems, ordinarily scheduled elections are held before the assembly reaches the end of a fixed or maximum term, and do not require a dissolution.
In mostWestminster systems, however, a dissolution legally ends the existence of the assembly, resulting in a temporary power vacuum, which may be filled in special circumstances byrecalling the old assembly if need be.[citation needed] Because of this peculiarity, Westminster systems also have automatically-triggered dissolutions when the assembly reaches the end of a fixed or maximum term, since the act of dissolution itself is synonymous with the end of the assembly's term, and elections cannot be held in anticipation of a dissolution.
Early dissolutions may be possible inparliamentary andsemi-presidential systems, to resolve conflicts between theexecutive and the legislature; either a "snap election" called by an executive seeking to increase its legislative support, or an election triggered by parliament withholdingconfidence and supply from the government. Somepresidential systems also allow early dissolutions, usually by the legislature voting to dissolve itself (as inCyprus), but sometimes by executive action in moreauthoritarian presidential systems, or, as inEcuador'smuerte cruzada, the president dissolving the legislature at the cost of facing a new election themselves.
In abicameral legislature, dissolution may apply jointly or separately to thelower house andupper house, or may apply only to the lower house, with the upper house never fully dissolved. In a bicameralWestminster system, the expression "dissolution of parliament" typically refers to the dissolution of the lower house, just as "member of parliament" means member of the lower house.
TheHouse of Representatives, but not theSenate, can be dissolved at any time by thegovernor-general on the advice of theprime minister. The term of the House expires three years after its first meeting if not dissolved earlier. The governor-general can dissolve the Senate only by also dissolving the House of Representatives (adouble dissolution) and only in limited circumstances spelled out in theConstitution.
There is aconvention that the Governor-General only orders a dissolution on the advice of the prime minister. This convention was demonstrated in thedismissal of prime ministerGough Whitlam by Governor GeneralSir John Kerr in 1975. Kerr claimed that dissolving the House of Representatives was his duty and "the only democratic and constitutional solution" to the political deadlock over supply.[1] Whitlam refused to advise Kerr to call an election, and Kerr replaced him with a caretaker prime minister,Malcolm Fraser. Fraser promptly advised a double dissolution, and Sir John acted in accordance with that advice.
Unlike the Commonwealth Parliament, thepremier andgovernor of Victoria have very little discretion in dissolving theParliament of Victoria. Both theLegislative Assembly and theLegislative Council are dissolved automatically twenty-five days before the last Saturday in November every four years. However, the governor can dissolve the Legislative Assembly if a motion of no confidence in the premier and the other ministers of state is passed and no motion of confidence is passed within the next week. Finally, the premier can advise the governor to dissolve both houses in the case of a deadlocked bill.
InBangladesh, the dissolution ofthe Parliament is governed byArticle 72 of the Constitution, which states that Parliament shall be summoned, prorogued, and dissolved by thePresident through public notification. The President exercises this power based on the written advice of thePrime Minister.[2]
Following the dissolution, general elections must be conducted within 90 days. The newly elected Parliament is required to convene within 30 days after the publication of election results.
A notable instance occurred on August 6, 2024, when PresidentMohammed Shahabuddin dissolved Parliament after Prime MinisterSheikh Hasina's resignation amida mass uprising which led to the formation of aninterim government tasked with overseeing the country until new elections could be organized.[3]
Although, Bangladesh’s constitution does not provide explicit provisions for an interim government following such a dissolution, leading to aconstitutional crisis during the period. The interim government established aConstitutional Reform Commission to draft a new constitution and prepare for constituent assembly elections.[4]
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InBelgium, dissolution occurs either by royal order or by law upon aDeclaration of Revision of the Constitution (Art. 195 Const.).[5] Since the First World War, elections have always been called with either of these actions, except for1929. A third scenario, dissolution by law due to a vacantthrone, has never occurred.
Dissolution by law dissolves both theChamber of Representatives and theSenate. A royal order originally could dissolve the Chamber, the Senate, or both. However, the last dissolution of one chamber only happened in1884; both chambers were always dissolved together since then. With the 1993constitutional reforms, only the Chamber could be dissolved, with the Senate being automatically dissolved as well. Since 2014constitutional reforms, only the Chamber can be dissolved, as the Senate is no longer directly elected.
After dissolution, elections must be held within 40 days, and the new chambers must convene within three months (within two months from 1831 to 2014).
Parliaments of theregions and communities cannot be dissolved; they have fixed five-year terms.
Under the currentconstitution, there is no formal way to dissolve theFederal Senate or theChamber of Deputies (Houses of theNational Congress).[6]
In May 1823, eight months after Independence, the first brazilian legislative experience began, with the installation of theGeneral, Constituent and Legislative Assembly, with the task of drafting the country's first Constitution. Six months later, in confrontation with the Deputies,EmperorDom Pedro dissolved the assembly, ordered the arrest and exile of some deputies and created aCouncil of State to draft theConstitution, which he signed in 1824.
This was the first of the eighteen times that the legislature was dissolved, the Imperial Constitution and its quasi-parliamentary model formalized the Emperor's power to dissolve the Chamber of Deputies (the Senate was not elected). During theRegency and reign ofDom Pedro II, the Chamber of Deputies was dissolved on several occasions, almost always when the clash between conservatives and liberals or between legislators and theCouncil of Ministers [pt] reached a degree considered too high by the Emperor.
After the Proclamation of the Republic, in 1889, a Constituent Congress was convened to prepare the first republican charter, which came into force in 1891. However, on 3 November of that year, the National Congress would be closed byPresidentDeodoro da Fonseca, with the legislature reinstated after the attempt was deemed a coup and he resigned.
The legislature was closed twice byGetúlio Vargas. After theRevolution of 1930, as Head of the Provisional Government, Vargas dissolved the National Congress, the state legislative assemblies and the municipal chambers. Pressured by the failedConstitutionalist Revolution, Vargas was forced to call elections for a National Constituent Assembly.
On 10 November 1937, now President of the Republic elected by the same National Congress, Vargas staged a coup d'état, establishing theEstado Novo. He closed the legislature and instituted a new, authoritarianConstitution. Despite the new charter determining the convening of a "National Parliament" with a appointed Federal Council and a Chamber of Deputies that could be dissolved, elections were never held.
During the brief parliamentary experience from 1961 to 1963 as a way to allow the inauguration of PresidentJoão Goulart under strong political and military opposition, theAdditional Act to the Constitution determined that "[v]erified the impossibility of maintaining the Council of Ministers for lack of parliamentary support, proven in motions of no confidence, consecutively opposed to three Councils, the President of the Republic may dissolve the Chamber of Deputies[...]".[7]
The then President of the Republic never exercised this attribution and the return to the presidential system stripped him of any competence to dissolve the Chamber of Deputies.
During the twenty-one years of the military dictatorship (1964–1985), the National Congress was "suspended" three times.Institutional Act No. 2 (AI-2) gave the President of the Republic the power to decree the recess of the two Houses of the National Congress, and during this period he had the prerogative to legislate.
On 20 October 1966, PresidentCastelo Branco decreed recess for a month, to contain a "grouping of counter-revolutionary elements" (the1964 Coup d'Etat was considered a revolution by the military) that had formed in the legislature "with the aim of disrupting public peace". On 13 December 1968, PresidentCosta e Silva issued AI-5, an institutional act that began the most repressive and violent period of the dictatorship, closing the National Congress to combat subversion and "ideologies contrary to the traditions of our people ".
The last person to decree the closure of the legislature was PresidentErnesto Geisel, in 1977, through the "April package", after the National Congress rejected a constitutional amendment. Geisel alleged that theMDB (then the opposition party on a unequal bipartisanship controlled by the military) had established a "minority dictatorship".
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TheHouse of Commons, but not theSenate, can be dissolved at any time by theKing of Canada or by theGovernor General on theadvice of theprime minister. If the government is refusedconfidence orsupply, the prime minister must either resign and permit a leader of another party to form a government, or else advise thegovernor general to dissolve Parliament. Also, the House of Commons typically dissolves within five years; however, in circumstances such as war, invasion, or insurrection, Parliament may extend this period. A continuation longer than five years requires approval by more than two-thirds of the House of Commons members or the legislative assembly.[8]
Theprovinciallegislatures may also be dissolved at any time for the same reasons, by the King of Canada or theLieutenant Governor on the advice of the provincialpremier. Most provinces and territories have establishedfixed election dates.
TheChamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic may be dissolved by the president when at least one condition specified by the constitution is fulfilled. The Senate can never be dissolved. After the dissolution, snap elections are to be held no later than after 60 days.
The chamber can be dissolved if
Since the formation of the Czech Republic, the Chamber of Deputies was only dissolved once. In 2013, by passing a motion of dissolution after a lengthy crisis following the fall ofPetr Nečas' government,
Before such practice was made possible by amending the Constitution in 2009, Chamber of Deputies was once dissolved in 1998 by passing a special constitutional act, which shortened its term, but such practice was blocked by theConstitutional Court, when it was tried again in 2009[9][circular reference]
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The government can call an election to theFolketing at any time, and is obliged to call one before the incumbent membership's four-year terms expire. However, the Folketing is never formallydissolved, and it retains its legislative power until new members have been elected. In practice the Folketing will cancel all its ongoing business when an election is called, to give the members time to campaign, but it can reconvene in case a national emergency requires urgent legislation before the election takes place.
Article 148 of the2008 Constitution of Ecuador grants the president the power to dissolve the National Assembly, but only at the price of also triggering a fresh election for the president. The mechanism, known asmuerte cruzada requires that a special election be held following dissolution, in which a new president and vice-president and a new National Assembly are elected. The candidates elected – to both the executive and legislative branches – then serve out the remainder of the current presidential and legislative terms.
The first and only invocation of the dissolution was during the2023 Ecuadorian political crisis when presidentGuillermo Lasso, undergoing impeachment proceedings in the National Assembly, dissolved the legislative body. Lasso was eligible to run for re-election, but chose not to.Daniel Noboa, his elected successor and the newly elected National Assembly in 2023 will serve out the rest of the term until 2025.
Per Section 60 of theConstitution of Estonia, regular elections to theRiigikogu, Estonia's unicameral parliament, are held on the first Sunday of March in the fourth year following the preceding parliamentary election. However, the Riigikogu can be dissolved by thePresident of Estonia and fresh elections called prior to the expiration of its four-year term if one of the following four circumstances should occur:
In the first, third, and fourth cases above, the President must call an early election. In the second case, however, a Government that has lost the confidence of the Riigikogu is not obliged to request an early election. This occurred in 2016, when Prime MinisterTaavi Rõivas lost a no confidence motion. His government resigned, andPresidentKersti Kaljulaid nominatedJüri Ratas to form the next government without an election taking place.[11][12]
Likewise, if a Government loses a no confidence vote and requests an early election, the President can refuse the Government's request if it appears a successor government could command the support of the Riigikogu.
As of 2018, every convocation of the Riigikogu has run its full term.
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ThePresident of Finland can dissolve the parliament and call for an early election. As per the version ofthe 2000 constitution currently in use, the president can do this only upon proposal by theprime minister and after consultations with the parliamentary groups while the Parliament is in session. In prior versions of the constitution, the President had the power to do this unilaterally.
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Under theFrench Fourth Republic formed afterWorld War II, there was originally a weak role for thepresident of France. However, whenCharles de Gaulle, whofavored apresidential government with a strongexecutive,[13] was invited to form a new government and constitution during theMay 1958 crisis he directed the constitutional committee chaired byMichel Debré to increase the authority of the presidency, including providing the ability to dissolve the National Assembly.[14]
Under Article 12 of the1958 French Constitution, theNational Assembly can be dissolved by thePresident at any time after consultation with theprime minister and the presidents of the two chambers ofParliament. After the declaration, newelections must be held within twenty to forty days. The National Assembly elected following such a dissolution cannot be dissolved within the first year of its term.[15]
A dissolution of the National Assembly most recently occurred when in June 2024, when President Emmanuel Macron dissolved the National Assembly to prompt the2024 French legislative election.[16] PresidentJacques Chirac previously dissolved the National Assembly before the1997 French legislative election in order to secure a new parliament more sympathetic to his policies, which ultimately failed when the oppositionSocialist Party won the election against Chirac's party theRally for the Republic.[17][18]
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According to theBasic Law, theBundestag can be dissolved by thefederal president if thechancellor loses avote of confidence,[19] or if a newly elected Bundestag proves unable to elect a chancellor even after a multi-phase election process (which initially requires an absolute majority but only a relative majority in subsequent ballots).[20] The second possibility has never occurred, but the Bundestag was dissolved in 1972, 1982, 2005 and 2024 when the then-ruling chancellorsWilly Brandt,Helmut Kohl,Gerhard Schröder andOlaf Scholz deliberately lost votes of confidence in order that there could be freshelections. In 1982 and 2005, the decree of dissolution was challenged without success before theConstitutional Court. No president has yet refused a dissolution of the Bundestag when the choice came to him.
The Bundestag is automatically dissolved four years after the last general election, and most Bundestags have lasted the full term.
The second federal legislative body, theBundesrat, cannot be dissolved; its members are appointed by thefederal states' governments rather than elected.
Thechief executive, who is the head of the territory and head of government, has the power to dissolve theLegislative Council under Article 51 of theHong Kong Basic Law:[21]
Before thehandover of Hong Kong in 1997, the Legislative Council could be dissolved any time at thegovernor's pleasure.[22]
Legislative power is constitutionally vested in theParliament of India, of which thePresident is the head, to facilitate the law-making process as per theConstitution.[23][24] ThePresident summons both the Houses (theLok Sabha and theRajya Sabha) of the parliament andprorogues them. They also have the power to dissolve theLok Sabha pursuant to Article 75(2)(b). WhenParliament is dissolved, all bills pending within theLok Sabha lapse.[25] However, bills in theRajya Sabha never lapse, and can remain pending for decades.[26]
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TheConstitution of Indonesia prohibitsPresident to dissolve theHouse of Representatives. This principle was originally written in the explanatory memorandum to the Constitution but was moved to the main body (precisely in article 7C) since the explanatory memorandum was eliminated in the Third Amendment.
Despite this, there was a constitutional crisis in 2001 when PresidentAbdurrahman Wahid attempted to prorogue the DPR on 23 July 2001 througha presidential decree.
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Dáil Éireann (the lower house of theOireachtas) can be dissolved by thePresident, on the advice of thetaoiseach (prime minister). The president may only deny such a dissolution if the taoiseach has lost the confidence of the Dáil, through avote of no confidence (or, it could be argued after a Budget or other important bill has failed to pass). This has never happened, and, in the past, taoisigh have requested dissolutions before votes of no confidence have taken place, so as to force a general election rather than a handover of Government. A Dáil must be dissolved, and then a general election held, within five years of its first meeting.
There are two notable instances when the President did not dissolve Dáil Éireann: 1989 and 1994. In the first instance, the newly elected Dáil failed to elect a Taoiseach when it first met (and at a number of meetings afterward). The incumbent taoiseachCharles Haughey was obliged constitutionally to resign, however, he initially refused to. He eventually tendered his resignation to PresidentPatrick Hillery and remained as taoiseach in an acting capacity. At the fourth attempt, the Dáil eventually re-elected Haughey as taoiseach. Had he requested a dissolution, it would probably have been accepted by the President on the grounds that the Dáil could not form a Government, but the President would have also been within his rights to refuse it. It is thought that Haughey chose not to do so but instead to go into a historic coalition because of poor opinion polls showing hisFianna Fáil party would lose seats in a second General Election.
In 1994,Albert Reynolds resigned as taoiseach when theLabour Party left a coalition with Fianna Fáil, but did not request a dissolution, in order that his successor in Fianna Fáil might forge a new coalition with Labour. Labour, however, went into Government with the main opposition party,Fine Gael. It has been speculated that the president at the time,Mary Robinson, would not have allowed a dissolution had Reynolds requested one. To date, no president has ever refused a dissolution.
One feature of the Irish system is that although the Dáil is dissolved, theSeanad Éireann (the Senate) is not, and may continue to meet during an election campaign for the Dáil. However, as many members of the Seanad are typically involved in election campaigns for the Dáil, the Seanad does not typically meet often, if at all, once the Dáil is dissolved. A general election for the Seanad must take place within 90 days of the election of the new Dáil.
Thepresident of Italy has the authority to dissolveparliament, and consequently call for newelections, until which the powers of the old parliamentare extended; however, the President loses this authority during the so-calledsemestre bianco, the last six months of his seven-year term, unless that period coincides at least in part with the final six months of the Parliament's five-year term, as stated in Article 88 of theConstitution of Italy: "In consultation with the presiding officers of Parliament, the President may dissolve one or both Houses of Parliament. The President of the Republic may not exercise such right during the final six months of the presidential term unless said period coincides in full or in part with the final six months of Parliament."[27]
After the resignation of theCabinet of Italy, which can be freely decided by theprime minister, or caused by avote of no confidence by the Parliament, or after general elections, the President has to consult the speakers of the two houses of Parliament, the delegations of theparliamentary groups, andsenators for life to find someone who might be appointed prime minister and lead a new government with the confidence of both Houses. The President dissolves Parliament only if the groups fail to find an agreement to form a majority coalition; the actual power of dissolution is in practice also shared by the Parliament, political parties, and by the outgoing prime minister. Since the Constitution of Italy came into force in 1948, the Italian Parliament has been dissolved nine times before the end of its five-year term, in 1972, 1976, 1979, 1983, 1987, 1994, 1996, 2008 and 2022.
InIsrael, early elections to theKnesset can be called before the scheduled date of the third Tuesday in the Jewish month ofCheshvan (late September through early November) four years after the previous elections if theprime minister calls early elections with Presidential approval due to gridlock, if no government is formed after 42 days of consultation with parties' floor leaders in the Knesset, if the budget is not approved by the Knesset by 31 March (3 months after the start of the fiscal year), or if half of the Knesset members vote in favor of early elections. This call for early elections is legally called the "Dissolution of the Knesset".[28]
However, strictly speaking, the Knesset is only truly dissolved – in the sense of being unconstituted and all MKs losing their seats – automatically 14 days after elections, simultaneously with the start of the newly elected Knesset's term.
InJapan, theHouse of Representatives of theNational Diet (parliament) can be dissolved at any time by theemperor, on the advice of theCabinet, headed by theprime minister. TheConstitution of Japan specifies that all members of the House can serve up to a four-year term. So far, however, parliaments have been dissolved prematurely with the exception of 9 December 1976[29] and 31 October 2021[30] dissolution.
TheHouse of Councillors, however, cannot be dissolved but only closed, and may, in times of national emergency, be convoked for an emergency session. Its members serve a fixed six-year term, with half of the seats, and theSpeaker of the Councillors, up for re-election every three years.[29]
The emperor both convokes the Diet and dissolves the House of Representatives, but only does so on the advice of the Cabinet.
TheParliament can be dissolved or prorogued at any time during its three-year term by thegovernor-general, usually on the advice of theprime minister.
According to theConstitution of Norway, theStorting (parliament) cannot be dissolved before serving its full four-year term.
TheNational Assembly of Pakistan, the country's lower house, dissolves automatically at the end of its five-year term, after which general elections must be held within 60 days. The upper house, called theSenate, cannot be dissolved.
Theprime minister can also advise thepresident to dissolve the National Assembly. The president is bound to do so within 48 hours after receiving the prime minister's summary, after which time the National Assembly is automatically dissolved.Before theEighteenth Amendment to theConstitution of Pakistan came into effect, the president could dissolve the National Assembly without the prime minister's advice by using Article 58-2(B) of the Constitution.
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Under thePeruvian Constitution of 1993, thepresident of Peru has the authority to dissolve theCongress of Peru if a vote of no confidence is passed three times by the legislative body, and has four months to call for new parliamentary elections or faces impeachment.
The Congress of Peru has been dissolved twice; once in 1992 by PresidentAlberto Fujimori who performed anauto-coup in April 1992 by dismantling both the legislative and judicial branches of government, and once by incumbent PresidentMartín Vizcarra, whodissolved the Congress in October 2019 in an effort to end the2017–2021 Peruvian political crisis.
Both of the presidents were immediately impeached and removed from office by the dissolved Congress, thus being illegitimate.
On 7 December 2022 the President of Peruattempted to dissolve Congress but was impeached.[31][32]
According to theRomanian Constitution, voted in 1991 and revised in 2003, thePresident may dissolve theParliament only if the Parliament rejects two consecutiveprime minister candidates proposed by the President. Both houses can be dissolved. No dissolution of the Parliament has taken place in Romania since 1991.
Under Articles 111 and 117 of theRussian Constitution,[33] thepresident may dissolve theState Duma, the lower house of theFederal Assembly, if it either expressesno confidence in theGovernment of Russia twice in two months or rejects his proposed candidate for theprime minister three times in a row. At the same time, the president cannot dissolve theFederation Council, the upper house of the Federal Parliament. The power to dissolve theState Duma has not been exercised under the current constitution of 1993. Before the new constitution was enacted, PresidentBoris Yeltsin had dissolved theCongress of People's Deputies andSupreme Soviet of Russia during theRussian constitutional crisis of 1993,[34] although he did not have the formal constitutional powers to do so.
InSpain, legislatures last four years, after which theking dissolves theCortes Generales.However, theprime minister, with previous deliberation on the Cabinet, can also dissolve the Cortes.As an exception, if there is no prime minister two months after the first unsuccessfulinvestiture attempt, the king dissolves the Cortes.
According to theConstitution, the maximumlegislative term of theParliament of Sri Lanka is 5 years from the first meeting. ThePresident of Sri Lanka may dissolve the Parliament. President shall not dissolve Parliament until the expiration of a period of not less than 2 years and 6 months from the date appointed for its first meeting, unless Parliament by resolution requests the President to dissolve Parliament.
TheKing may at any time dissolve Parliament. By constitutional convention, this is only done on the advice of thePrime Minister.[35] Thisprerogative power to dissolve Parliament was removed by theFixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, but was revived by theDissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022. A Parliament dissolves automatically five years after its first meeting unless dissolved earlier.[36]
The Assembly can vote to dissolve itself early by atwo-thirds majority of the total number of its members. It is also automatically dissolved if it is unable to elect afirst minister and deputy first minister (effectively joint first ministers, the only distinction being in the titles) within six weeks of its first meeting or of those positions becoming vacant.
Under section 2 of theScotland Act 1998, as originally passed, ordinary general elections for theScottish Parliament are held on the first Thursday in May every four years (1999,2003,2007 etc.) The date of the poll may be varied by up to one month either way by the monarch on the proposal of thepresiding officer. However, section 4 of theFixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 postponed the general election that would have been held on 7 May 2015 to 5 May 2016 to avoid it coinciding with the UK general election fixed under that act.[37] By theScottish Elections (Dates) Act 2016, the following general election, scheduled for 7 May 2020, was postponed to 6 May 2021 for the same reason,[38] although this became a moot point when a snap UK general election was held inJune 2017 (a further UK general election was held inDecember 2019). Eventually, under theScottish Elections (Reform) Act 2020, the "normal" term was extended to five years, which wasde facto already the practice (2011,2016,2021 etc.).
Under section 3 of the Scotland Act 1998, if the parliament itself resolves that it should be dissolved (with at least two-thirds of the members voting in favour), or if the parliament fails to nominate one of its members to befirst minister within certain time limits, the presiding officer proposes a date for an extraordinary general election and the parliament is dissolved by the monarch byroyal proclamation.
Under theWales Act 2014, ordinary general elections to theSenedd (Welsh Parliament) are held the first Thursday in May every five years. This extension from a four- to five-year term was designed to prevent Senedd elections clashing with general elections to the Westminster Parliament subsequent to theFixed-term Parliaments Act 2011.
In 1774 after theBoston Tea Party, theMassachusetts Bay Province's legislature was dismissed under theMassachusetts Government Act and the colony was placed undermartial law under the command of GeneralThomas Gage. In practice, the majority of the colony came under thede facto control of the unrecognizedMassachusetts Provincial Congress, and General Gage's attempts to suppress widespread dissent among the colonists directly lead to theBattles of Lexington and Concord and the beginning of theRevolutionary War.[39]
TheUnited States Constitution does not allow for the dissolution ofCongress, instead allowing for prorogation by thePresident of the United States when Congress is unable to agree on a time of adjournment. The delegates to theConstitutional Convention of 1787 agreed on the need to limit presidential authority to prevent a return toautocracy.[40] InFederalist No. 69,Alexander Hamilton stressed that unlike theKing of Great Britain, the President does not have the authority to dismiss Congress at his preference.[41] To date, the presidential authority to prorogue Congress has never been used, although in 2020 PresidentDonald Trump threatened to use it in order to makerecess appointments.[42]
TheBolivarian Constitution of Venezuela authorizes, through various articles, thepresident to dissolve theNational Assembly.
Article 236 of the Constitution establishes which are the functions to be performed by the first national president; Paragraph 23 of this section states that one of the powers of the president is: "Dissolve the National Assembly in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution."
In statement 240 explains that will dissolve the Parliament when in a same constitutional period the Assembly approve the removal of the vice president of the country by means ofcensure, three times.
It is also clarified that the decree of dissolution of the Venezuelan congress entails the call for elections for a new legislature, which must be held in the next 60 days. In addition, this section indicates that the Parliament can not be dissolved during the last year of its constitutional period.
In the2017 Venezuelan constitutional crisis, theSupreme Tribunal of Justice dissolved the National Assembly and assumed its legislative powers. The decision was viewed by theVenezuelan opposition and many members of the international community, including the United States,Mercosur, and theOrganization of American States, as aself-coup by PresidentNicolás Maduro. After several days, the decision was reversed on the advice of President Maduro.[43][44][45]