Kuwait by-elections boost government grip on assembly

Almost all opposition groups boycotted the by-elections as they did the general elections held in February and December of 2012 which were both overturned by court judgements.

Authorities did not provide an official turnout figure but numbers posted on the information ministry website suggested it was around 23 percent.

Three of the five winners were former MPs, according to results announced early Friday. The Shiite minority community increased its representation from seven to eight seats.

The by-elections were called after opposition MPs Riyadh al-Adasani, Abdulkarim al-Kundari and Hussein al-Mutairi quit two months ago when parliament rejected their request to question Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al-Sabah, a senior member of the ruling family, over

allegations he gave cash handouts to lawmakers.

A few days later, Ali al-Rashed, a former speaker, and Safa al-Hashem, the only female MP, also resigned saying the situation in the Gulf state had reached a "deadlock". 

More than 6,000 Kuwaitis took to the streets earlier this month to protest against government corruption. They demanded improved services and increased transparency in government, and chanted "the people demand to cleanse the judiciary".

The by-elections were also held amid a new political crisis over allegations that two former senior officials plotted a coup and were engaged in a major corruption scam.

The high-profile case, involving senior members of the ruling family, prompted Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah to appeal for calm in a televised address on Wednesday. The ruler urged Kuwaitis to allow the judiciary to handle the issue.

Between mid-2006 and last year, parliament was dissolved six times and there were more than a dozen governments.

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