Electoral system for national legislature

Namibia, Constitution 1990 (as amended in 2014), accessed 2 December 2019

Article 49. Elections

The election of members in terms of Article 46(1)(a) hereof shall be on party lists and in accordance with the principles of proportional representation as set out in Schedule 4 hereof.

Schedule 4. Election of members of the national assembly

1. For the purpose of filling the ninety-six (96) seats in the National Assembly pursuant to the provisions of Article 46 (1)(a) hereof, the total number of valid votes cast in a general election for these seats shall be divided by ninety-six (96) and the result shall constitute the quota of valid votes per seat.

2. The total number of votes cast in favour of a registered political party which offers itself for this purpose shall be divided by the quota of votes per seat and the result shall, subject to paragraph (3), constitute the number of seats to which that political party shall be entitled in the National Assembly.

3. Where the formula set out in paragraph (2) yields a surplus fraction not absorbed by the number of seats allocated to the political party concerned, such surplus shall compete with other similar surpluses accruing to any other political party or parties participating in the election, and any undistributed seat or seats (in terms of the formula set out in paragraph (2)) shall be awarded to the party or parties concerned in sequence of the highest surplus. In the event of a tie of surpluses, and as a result of such tie the undistributed seat(s) cannot be awarded, then the undistributed seat(s) will be awarded by lot.

4. Subject to the requirements pertaining to the qualification of members of the National Assembly, a political party which qualifies for seats in terms of paragraphs (2) and (3) shall be free to choose in its own discretion which persons to nominate as members of the National Assembly to fill the said seats.

5. Provision shall be made by Act of Parliament for all parties participating in an election of members of the National Assembly to be represented at all material stages of the election process and to be afforded a reasonable opportunity for scrutinising the counting of the votes cast in such election.

Namibia uses the closed-list proportional representation system, with the whole country constituting a single district returning 96 members of parliament.