Bicameralism

This article is about a form of legislature. For other uses, seeBicameralism (disambiguation).

Bicameralismis a type oflegislaturethat is divided into two separateassemblies,chambers, or houses, known as abicameral legislature.Bicameralism is distinguished fromunicameralism,in which all members deliberate and vote as a single group. As of 2022,roughly 40% of the world's national legislatures are bicameral, while unicameralism represents 60% nationally and much more at the subnational level.

Often, the members of the two chambers are elected or selected by different methods, which vary fromjurisdictionto jurisdiction. This can often lead to the two chambers having very different compositions of members.

Enactmentofprimary legislationoften requires aconcurrent majority—the approval of a majority of members in each of the chambers of the legislature. When this is the case, the legislature may be called an example ofperfect bicameralism.However, in many parliamentary and semi-presidential systems, the house to which the executive isresponsible(e.g.House of Commonsof theUKandNational AssemblyofFrance) can overrule the other house (e.g.House of Lordsof the UK andSenateof France) and may be regarded as an example ofimperfect bicameralism.Some legislatures lie in between these two positions, with one house able to overrule the other only under certain circumstances.

History of bicameral legislatures

ThePalace of Westminster,seat of theParliament of the United Kingdom

TheUnited States Capitol,seat of theUnited States Congress

TheNew Sansad Bhavan,seat of theParliament of India

The British Parliament is often referred to as the "Mother of Parliaments"(in fact a misquotation ofJohn Bright,who remarked in 1865 that "England is the Mother of Parliaments" ) because theBritish Parliamenthas been the model for most other parliamentary systems, and itsActshave created many other parliaments.The origins of British bicameralism can be traced to 1341, when the Commons met separately from the nobility and clergy for the first time, creating what was effectively an Upper Chamber and a Lower Chamber, with the knights and burgesses sitting in the latter. This Upper Chamber became known as theHouse of Lordsfrom 1544 onward, and the Lower Chamber became known as theHouse of Commons,collectively known as theHouses of Parliament.

Many nations with parliaments have to some degree emulated the British "three-tier" model. Most countries in Europe and theCommonwealthhave similarly organised parliaments with a largely ceremonialhead of statewho formally opens and closes parliament, a large elected lower house, and (unlike Britain) a smaller upper house.

TheFounding Fathers of the United Statesalso favoured a bicameral legislature. The idea was to have the Senate be wealthier and wiser.Benjamin Rushsaw this though, and noted that "this type of dominion is almost always connected with opulence". The Senate was created to be a stabilising force, not elected by mass electors, but selected by the State legislators. Senators would be more knowledgeable and more deliberate—a sort of republican nobility—and a counter to whatJames Madisonsaw as the "fickleness and passion" that could absorb the House.

He noted further that "The use of the Senate is to consist in its proceeding with more coolness, with more system and with more wisdom, than the popular branch." Madison's argument led the Framers to grant the Senate prerogatives in foreign policy, an area where steadiness, discretion, and caution were deemed especially important.State legislators chose the Senate, and senators had to possess significant property to be deemed worthy and sensible enough for the position. In 1913, the17th Amendmentpassed, which mandated choosing Senators by popular vote rather than State legislatures.

As part of theGreat Compromise,the Founding Fathers invented a new rationale for bicameralism in which the Senate had an equal number of delegates per state, and the House had representatives by relative populations.

Rationale for bicameralism and criticism

A formidable sinister interest may always obtain the complete command of a dominant assembly by some chance and for a moment, and it is therefore of great use to have a second chamber of an opposite sort, differently composed, in which that interest in all likelihood will not rule.

— Walter Bagehot,"The English Constitution", in Norman St John-Stevas, ed.,The Collected Works of Walter Bagehot,London, The Economist, vol. 5, pp. 273–274.

Federal stateshave often adopted it as an awkward compromise between existing power held equally by each state or territory and a more democratic proportional legislature.For states considering a different constitutional arrangement that may shift power to new groupings, bicameralism could be demanded by currently hegemonic groups who would otherwise prevent any structural shift (e.g. military dictatorships, aristocracies).

The growing awareness of the complexity of the notion of representation and the multi-functional nature of modern legislatures may be affording incipient new rationales for second chambers, though these do generally remain contested institutions in ways that first chambers are not. An example of political controversy regarding a second chamber has been the debate over the powers of theSenate of Canadaor the election of theSenate of France.Bicameral legislatures as a result have been trending down for some time withunicameral,proportional legislatures seen as more democratic and effective.

The relationship between the two chambers varies: in some cases, they have equal power, while in others, one chamber (the directly elected lower house with proportional representation) is clearly superior in its powers. The first tends to be the case in federal systems and those with presidential governments. The second tends to be the case in unitary states withparliamentary systems.There are two streams of thought: critics believe bicameralism makes meaningful political reforms more difficult to achieve and increases the risk of gridlock—particularly in cases where both chambers have similar powers—while proponents argue the merits of the "checks and balances"provided by the bicameral model, which they believe help prevent ill-considered legislation.

Communication between houses

Formal communication between houses is by various methods, including:

Sending messages

Formal notices, such as ofresolutionsor the passing of bills, usually done in writing, via theclerkandspeakerof each house.

Transmission

of bills or amendment to bills requiring agreement from the other house.

Joint session

aplenary sessionof both houses at the same time and place.

Joint committees

which may be formed by committees of each house agreeing to join, or by joint resolution of each house. TheUnited States Congresshasconference committeesto resolve discrepancies between House and Senate versions of a bill, similar to "Conferences" in Westminster parliaments.

Conferences

Conferences of the Houses of the English (later British) Parliament met in thePainted Chamberof thePalace of Westminster.Historically there were two distinct types: "ordinary" and "free". The British Parliament last held an ordinary conference in 1860—its elaborate procedure yielding to the simpler sending of messages. A free conference resolves a dispute through "managers" meeting less formally in private. The last free conference at Westminster was in 1836 on an amendment to theMunicipal Corporations Act 1835;the previous one had been in 1740—with not much more success than ordinary conferences, the free type yielded to the greater transparency of messages.In theParliament of Australiathere have been two formal conferences, in 1930 and 1931, but many informal conferences.As of 2007the "Conference of Managers" remains the usual procedure for dispute resolution in theParliament of South Australia.In theParliament of New South Walesin 2011, theLegislative Assemblyrequested a free conference with theLegislative Councilover a bill on graffiti; after a year the Council refused, describing the mechanism as archaic and inappropriate.The two houses of theParliament of Canadahave also used conferences, but not since 1947 (although they retain the option).

Examples of bicameralism at the national level

Federal

TheNational Congress of Brazil,seat of theChamber of Deputiesand theFederal Senate

Some countries, such asArgentina,Australia,Austria,Belgium,Bosnia and Herzegovina,Brazil,Canada,Germany,India,Malaysia,Mexico,Nepal,Nigeria,Pakistan,Russia,Switzerland,and theUnited States,link their bicameral systems to theirfederalpolitical structure.

In the United States, Australia, Mexico, Brazil, and Nepal for example, each state or province is given the same number of seats in one of the houses of the legislature, despite variance between the populations of the states or provinces.

Canada

The federal bicameralParliament of Canada,which contains aHouse of Commonsand aSenate

Canada's elected lower house, theHouse of Commons,comprises Members of Parliament (MPs) from single-member "ridings" based mainly on population (updated every 10 years using Census data). The Commons is democratically elected every four years (constitutionally up to five years). In contrast, inCanada's upper house,Senators are appointed to serve until age 75 by theGovernor Generalon theadviceof thePrime Ministerthrough anIndependent Advisory Boardas of 2016.

The Government (i.e. executive) is responsible to and must maintain the confidence of the elected House of Commons. Although the two chambers formally have many of the same powers, this accountability clearly makes the Commons dominant—determining which party is in power, approving its proposed budget, and (largely) the laws enacted. The Senate primarily acts as a chamber of revision: it rarely rejects bills passed by the Commons but does regularly amend them; such amendments respect each bill's purpose, so they are usually acceptable to the Commons. The Senate's power to investigate issues of concern to Canada can raise their profile (sometimes sharply) on voters' political agendas.

Australia

The federal bicameralParliament of Australia,which contains aHouse of Representativesand aSenate

The bicameralParliament of Australiaconsists of two Houses: thelower houseis called theHouse of Representativesand theupper houseis named theSenate.As of 31 August 2017,the lower house has 151 members, each elected from single-member constituencies, known aselectoral divisions(commonly referred to as "electorates" or "seats" ) using full-preferenceinstant-runoff voting.This tends to lead to the chamber being dominated by two major groups, theLiberal/NationalCoalitionand theLabor Party.The government of the day must achieve the confidence of this House to gain and hold power.

The upper house, the Senate, is also popularly elected, under thesingle transferable votesystem ofproportional representation.There are a total of 76 senators: 12 senators are elected from each of the 6Australian states(regardless of population) and 2 from each of the 2 autonomous internal territories (theAustralian Capital Territoryand theNorthern Territory). This makes the total number 76, i.e. 6×12 + 2×2.

Unlike upper houses in mostWestminster parliamentary systems,the Australian Senate is vested with significant power, including the capacity to block legislation initiated by the government in the House of Representatives. This block can however be overridden in ajoint sittingafter adouble dissolutionelection, at which the House of Representatives has the dominant numbers.

As a result of proportional representation, the chamber features a multitude of parties vying for power. The governing party or coalition, which must maintain the confidence of the lower house, rarely has a majority in the Senate and usually needs to negotiate with other parties and Independents to get legislation passed.

Others

In German, Indian, and Pakistani systems, the upper houses (theBundesrat,theRajya Sabha,and theSenaterespectively) are even more closely linked with the federal system, being appointed or elected directly by the governments or legislatures of eachGermanorIndian state,orPakistani province.This was also the case in the United States before theSeventeenth Amendmentwas adopted. Because of this coupling to theexecutive branch,German legal doctrine does not treat theBundesratas the second chamber of a bicameral system formally. Rather, it sees theBundesratand theBundestagas independent constitutional bodies. Only the directly electedBundestagis considered the parliament.In the GermanBundesrat,the variousLänderhave between three and six votes; thus, while the less populated states have a lower weight, they still have a stronger voting power than would be the case in a system based proportionately on population, as themost populousLandcurrently has about 27 times the population of theleast populous.The Indian upper house does not have the states represented equally, but on the basis of their population.

There is also bicameralism in countries that are not federations, but have upper houses with representation on a territorial basis. For example, in South Africa, theNational Council of Provinces(and before 1997, theSenate) has its members chosen by eachprovince's legislature.

In Spain, theSenatefunctions as ade factoterritorially based upper house, and there has been some pressure from theAutonomous Communitiesto reform it into a strictly territorial chamber.

TheEuropean Unionmaintains a somewhat close to bicameral legislative system consisting of theEuropean Parliament,which is elected in elections on the basis of universal suffrage, and theCouncil of the European Union,which consists of one representative for each government of member countries, who are competent for a relevant field of legislation. Though the European Union has a highly unusual character in terms of legislature, one could say that the closest point of equivalency lies within bicameral legislatures.The European Union is considered neither a country nor a state, but it enjoys the power to address national Governments in many areas.

Aristocratic and post-aristocratic

In a few countries, bicameralism involves the juxtaposition of democratic and aristocratic elements.

House of Lords of the United Kingdom

The House of Lords chamber

The best known example is the BritishHouse of Lords,which includes a number ofhereditary peers.The House of Lords is a vestige of the aristocratic system that once predominated in British politics, while the other house, theHouse of Commons,is entirely elected. Over the years, some have proposed reforms to the House of Lords, some of which have been at least partly successful. TheHouse of Lords Act 1999limited the number of hereditary peers (as opposed tolife peers,appointed by theMonarchon the advice of thePrime Minister) to 92, down from around 700. Of these 92, one is theEarl Marshal,a hereditary office always held by theDuke of Norfolk,one is theLord Great Chamberlain,a hereditary office held by turns, currently byBaron Carrington,and the other 90 areelected by all sitting peers.Hereditary peers elected by the House to sit as representative peers sit for life; when a representative peer dies, there is a by-election to fill the vacancy. The power of the House of Lords to block legislation is curtailed by theParliament Acts 1911 and 1949.Peers can introduce bills except Money Bills, and all legislation must be passed by bothHouses of Parliament.If not passed within two sessions, theHouse of Commonscan override the Lords' delay by invoking theParliament Act.Certain legislation, however, must be approved by both Houses without being forced by the Commons under theParliament Act.These include any bill that would extend the time length of a Parliament, private bills, bills sent to the House of Lords less than one month before the end of a session, and bills that originated in the House of Lords.

Life Peers are appointed either by recommendation of the Appointment Commission (the independent body that vets non-partisan peers, typically from academia, business or culture) or by Dissolution Honours, which take place at the end of every Parliamentary term when leaving MPs may be offered a seat to keep their institutional memory. It is traditional to offer a peerage to every outgoing Speaker of the House of Commons.

Further reform of the Lords has been proposed; however, no proposed reforms have been able to achieve public consensus or government support. Members of the House of Lords all have an aristocratic title, or are from theClergy.26 Archbishops and Bishops of theChurch of Englandsit asLords Spiritual(theArchbishop of Canterbury,Archbishop of York,theBishop of London,theBishop of Durham,theBishop of Winchesterand the next 21 longest-serving Bishops). It is usual that retiring Archbishops, and certain other Bishops, are appointed to theCrossbenchesand given a life peerage.

Until 2009, 12Lords of Appeal in Ordinarysat in the House as the highest court in the land; they subsequently became justices of the newly createdSupreme Court of the United Kingdom.As of 16 February 2021, 803 people sit in the House of Lords, with 92 Hereditary Peers, 26 Lords Spiritual and 685 Life Peers. Membership is not fixed and decreases only on the death, retirement or resignation of a peer.

Japan's former House of Peers

Another example of aristocratic bicameralism was the JapaneseHouse of Peers,abolished afterWorld War IIand replaced with the presentHouse of Councillors.

Unitary states

Some bicameral legislatures have chambers that meet in different buildings, at different parts of the city. Here, France's upper house called theSenatemeet in theLuxembourg Palace(top), while the lower house, theNational Assembly,meets at thePalais Bourbon(bottom).

Manyunitary stateslikeItaly,France,theNetherlands,thePhilippines,theCzech Republic,theRepublic of IrelandandRomaniahave bicameral systems. In countries such as these, the upper house generally focuses on scrutinizing and possibly vetoing the decisions of the lower house.

Italian Parliament

On the other hand, inItalytheParliamentconsists of two chambers that have the same role and power: theSenate(Senate of the Republic, commonly considered theupper house) and theChamber of Deputies(considered thelower house). The main difference among the two chambers is the way the two chambers are composed: the deputies, in fact, are elected on a nationwide basis, whilst the members of the Senate are elected on a regional basis: this may lead to different majorities among the two chambers because, for example, a party may be the first nationally but second or third in some regions. Considering that in the Italian Republic the Government needs to win confidence votes in both the chambers, it may happen that a Government has a strong majority (usually) in the Chamber of Deputies and a weak one (or no majority at all) in the Senate. This has led sometimes to legislative deadlocks, and has caused instability in the Italian Government.

Indirectly elected Upper Houses (France, Ireland, Netherlands)

In some of these countries, the upper house is indirectly elected. Members of France'sSenateand Ireland'sSeanad Éireannare chosen byelectoral colleges.In Ireland, it consists of members of the lower house, local councillors, theTaoiseach,and graduates of selected universities, while the Netherlands'Senateis chosen by members of provincial assemblies (who, in turn, are directly elected).

Semi-bicameral (Hong Kong, Northern Ireland; earlier in Norway, the Netherlands)

InHong Kong,members of the unicameralLegislative Councilreturned from the democratically elected geographical constituencies and partially democraticfunctional constituenciesare required to vote separately since 1998 on motions, bills or amendments to government bills not introduced by the government. The passage of these motions, bills or amendments to government motions or bills requires double majority in both groups simultaneously. (Before 2004, when elections to the Legislative Council from theElection Committeewas abolished, members returned through the Election Committee vote with members returned from geographical constituencies.) The double majority requirement does not apply to motions, bills and amendments introduced by thegovernment.

Another similar situation arecross-community votesinNorthern Irelandwhen thepetition of concernprocedure is invoked.

Norwayhad a kind ofsemi-bicameral legislaturewith two chambers, or departments, within the same elected body, theStorting.These were called the Lagting and the Odelsting, and were abolished after the general election of 2009. According toMorten Søberg,there was a related system in the 1798 constitution of theBatavian Republic.

Examples of bicameralism in subnational entities

In some countries with federal systems, individual states (like those of theUnited States,Argentina,AustraliaandIndia) may also have bicameral legislatures. A few such states asNebraskain the U.S.,Queenslandin Australia,Bavariain Germany, andTucumánandCórdobain Argentina have later adopted unicameral systems. (Brazilian statesandCanadian provincesall abolished upper houses).

Argentina

Provincial legislatures in Argentina

Only 8 out of 24provincesstill have bicameral legislatures, with aSenateand aChamber of Deputies:Buenos Aires,Catamarca,Corrientes,Entre Ríos,Mendoza,Salta,San Luis(since 1987) andSanta Fe.TucumánandCórdobachanged tounicameralsystems in 1990 and 2001 respectively.Santiago del Esterochanged to a bicameral legislature in 1884, but changed back to a unicameral system in 1903.

Australia

When the Australian states were founded as British colonies in the 19th century, they each had a bicameral Parliament. The lower house was traditionally elected based on the one-vote-one-value principle, with universal male suffrage, later expanded to women, whereas the upper house was either appointed on the advice of the government or elected, with a strong bias towards country voters and landowners. AfterFederation,these became the state Parliaments. In Queensland, the appointedupper housewas abolished in 1922, while inNew South Walesthere were similar attempts at abolition, before theupper housewas reformed in the 1970s to provide for direct election.

Beginning in the 1970s, Australian states (except Queensland, which is unicameral) began to reform their upper houses to introduce proportional representation in line with the Federal Senate. The first was theSouth Australian Legislative Councilin 1973, which initially used aparty listsystem (replaced with STV in 1982),followed by the Single Transferable Vote being introduced for theNew South Wales Legislative Councilin 1978,theWestern Australian Legislative Councilin 1987and theVictorian Legislative Councilin 2003.

Nowadays, the upper house both federally and in most states is elected usingproportional representationwhile the lower house usesInstant-runoff votingin single member electorates. This is reversed in the state ofTasmania,where proportional representation is used for thelower houseand single member electorates for theupper house.

Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Legislature of theFederation of Bosnia and Herzegovina,one of the two entities ofBosnia and Herzegovina,is a bicameral legislative body. The House of Representatives has 98 delegates, elected for four-year terms by proportional representation. The House of Peoples has 58 members, 17 delegates from among each of the constituent peoples of the Federation, and 7 delegates from among the other peoples.Republika Srpska,the other entity, has a unicameral parliament, known as theNational Assembly,but there is also a Council of Peoples who isde factothe other legislative house.

India

Only 6 of the 36 states or Union Territories of India have bicameral legislatures,Andhra Pradesh,Bihar,Karnataka,Maharashtra,TelanganaandUttar Pradesh,while the rest all have unicameral legislatures. The lower houses are calledLegislative Assemblies,and their members are elected by universal adult suffrage from single-member constituencies in state elections, which are normally held every five years called Vidhana Sabha. In the six states with bicameral legislatures, the upper house is called theLegislative Council(Vidhan Parishad) or Vidhana Parishat, one-third of whose members are elected every two years. Members of the Legislative Council are elected in various ways:

• One-third are elected by the members of local bodies in the state such asmunicipalities,gram panchayats,block development councilsanddistrict councils.
• One-third are elected by the members of the state'sLegislative Assemblyfrom amongst persons who are not members of the State Legislative Assembly.
• One-sixth are nominated by thegovernorof the state from amongst persons having knowledge or practical experience in fields such asliterature,science,arts,theco-operative movementandsocial service.
• One-twelfth are elected from special constituencies by persons who arecollege graduatesof three years' standing residing in those constituencies.
• One-twelfth are elected by persons engaged for at least three years in teaching ineducational institutions within the statenot lower thansecondary schools,includingcollegesanduniversities.

From 1956 to 1958 the Andhra Pradesh Legislature was unicameral. In 1958, when the State Legislative Council was formed, it became bicameral until 1 June 1985 when it was abolished. This continued until March 2007 when the State Legislative Council was reestablished and elections were held for its seats. InTamil Nadu,a resolution was passed on 14 May 1986 and the state's Legislative Council was dissolved on 1 November 1986. Again on 12 April 2010, a resolution was passed to reestablish the council, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Similarly, the states ofAssam,Jammu and Kashmir,Madhya Pradesh,Punjab,andWest Bengalhave also dissolved the upper houses of theirstate legislatures.

United States

During the 1930s, the Legislature of the State of Nebraska was reduced from bicameral to unicameral with the 43 members that once comprised that state's Senate. One of the arguments used to sell the idea at the time to Nebraska voters was that by adopting a unicameral system, the perceived evils of the "conference committee"process would be eliminated.

A conference committee is appointed when the two chambers cannot agree on the same wording of a proposal, and consists of a small number of legislators from each chamber. This tends to place much power in the hands of only a small number of legislators. Whatever legislation, if any, the conference committee finalizes is presented in an unamendable "take-it-or-leave-it" manner by both chambers.

During his term asgovernorof the State ofMinnesota,Jesse Venturaproposed converting the Minnesotan legislature to a single chamber withproportional representation,as a reform that he felt would solve many legislative difficulties and impinge upon legislative corruption. In his book on political issues,Do I Stand Alone?,Ventura argued that bicameral legislatures for provincial and local areas were excessive and unnecessary, and discussed unicameralism as a reform that could address many legislative and budgetary problems for states.

Historical

The German federal state ofBavariahad a bicameral legislature from 1946 to 1999, when theSenatewas abolished by a referendum amending the state's constitution. The other 15 states have used a unicameral system since their founding.

In theSoviet Union,regional and localSovietswere unicameral. After the adoption of the1993 Russian Constitution,bicameralism was introduced in some regions. Bicameral regional legislatures are still technically allowed by federal law but this clause is dormant now. The last region to switch from bicameralism to unicameralism wasSverdlovsk Oblastin 2012.

FourBrazilian states(Bahia,Ceará,PernambucoandSão Paulo) had bicameral legislatures that were abolished whenGetúlio Vargascame to power after theRevolution of 1930.

Reform

Arab political reform

A 2005 reporton democratic reform in the Arab world by the U.S.Council on Foreign Relationsco-sponsored by former Secretary of StateMadeleine Albrighturged Arab states to adopt bicameralism, with upper chambers appointed on a 'specialized basis'. The Council claimed that this would protect against the 'Tyranny of the majority', expressing concerns that without a system of checks and balances extremists would use the single chamber parliaments to restrict the rights ofminoritygroups.

In 2002,Bahrainadopted a bicameral system with an elected lower chamber and an appointed upper house. This led to a boycott of parliamentary elections that year by theAl Wefaqparty, who said that the government would use the upper house to veto their plans. Many secular critics of bicameralism were won around to its benefits in 2005, after many MPs in the lower house voted for the introduction of so-calledmorality police.

Romania

Areferendumon introducing a unicameral Parliament instead of the current bicameralParliamentwas held inRomaniaon 22 November 2009. The turnout rate was 50.95%, with 77.78% of "Yes" votes for a unicameral Parliament.This referendum had a consultative role, thus requiring a parliamentary initiative and another referendum to ratify the new proposed changes.

Ivory Coast

Areferendumon a newconstitutionwas held on 30 October 2016. The constitution draft would create a bicameralParliamentinstead of the current unicameral. TheSenateis expected to represent the interests of territorial collectivities and Ivoirians living abroad. Two thirds of the Senate is to be elected at the same time as the general election. The remaining one third is appointed by the president elect.

Examples

Current

Nations with a bicameral legislature

Nations with a unicameral legislature

Nations with a unicameral legislature and an advisory body

Nations with no legislature

No data

Federal

Country	Bicameral body		Notes
	Upper house	Lower house
Argentina	National Congress		Of the twenty-three provincial legislatures, eight (Buenos Aires,Catamarca,Corrientes,Entre Ríos,Mendoza,Salta,San Luis,andSanta Fe) are bicameral, while the remaining fifteen and the legislature of theAutonomous City of Buenos Airesare unicameral.
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Australia	Parliament		All of the state parliaments exceptQueensland's are also bicameral. The legislatures of theNTand theACTare unicameral.
	Senate	House of Representatives
Austria	Parliament		All of theBundesländerhave unicameral parliaments.
	Bundesrat(Federal Council)	Nationalrat(National Council)
Belgium	Federal Parliament		All of thecommunity and regionalparliaments are unicameral.
	Senate	Chamber of Representatives
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Parliamentary Assembly		TheParliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovinais also bicameral, while theNational Assembly of Republika Srpskais unicameral.
	House of Peoples	House of Representatives
Brazil	National Congress		All of the 26 state legislatures and the Federal District legislature are unicameral.
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Canada	Parliament		All of the provincial and territorial legislatures are unicameral.
	Senate	House of Commons
Ethiopia	Federal Parliamentary Assembly		Regional Councils are unicameral. Assemblypersons of the Regional Councils are elected directly.
	House of Federation	House of Peoples' Representatives
Germany	N/A		Technically, Bundestag and Bundesrat form two distinct unicameral legislative constitutional bodies not framed by a comprehensive institution. German jurisprudence doesn't recognise the Bundesrat as a parliamentary chamber, because it consists of members of the state governments. Although it must always be heard in the legislative process, it only has to give consent to bills in certain defined areas. All of the federal states (Länder) today have unicameralLandtage.
	Bundesrat(Federal Council)	Bundestag(FederalDiet)
India	Parliament		Six of thetwenty-eight statesalso have bicameral legislatures, consisting of the upper house, theState Legislative Council(Vidhan Parishad) and the lower house, theState Legislative Assembly(Vidhan Sabha) respectively. The remaining twenty-two states and theunion territoriesofDelhi,Jammu and KashmirandPuducherryhave unicameral legislatures.
	Rajya Sabha(Council of States)	Lok Sabha(House of the People)
Malaysia	Parliament		All the 13 State Legislative Assemblies are unicameral.
	Dewan Negara(Senate)	Dewan Rakyat(House of Representatives)
Mexico	Congress		All the 31 State Congresses and the Congress of Mexico City are unicameral.
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Nepal	Parliament		All of the provincial assemblies are unicameral.
	Rastriya Sabha(National Assembly)	Pratinidhi Sabha(House of Representatives)
Nigeria	National Assembly
	Senate	House of Representatives
Pakistan	Parliament		All of the provincial assemblies are unicameral.
	Senate	National Assembly
Russia	Federal Assembly		All the regional legislatures are now unicameral while bicameralism in regions is technically allowed by the Federation.
	Federation Council	State Duma
Somalia	Parliament
	Senate	House of The People
Switzerland	Federal Assembly		All of the cantons have unicameral parliaments.
	Council of States	National Council
United States	Congress		All of the state legislatures, exceptNebraska,are also bicameral. TheLegislative Assembly of Puerto Ricois bicameral. TheCouncil of the District of Columbiais unicameral.
	Senate	House of Representatives

Unitary

Country	Bicameral body		Notes
	Upper house	Lower house
Algeria	Parliament
	Council of the Nation	People's National Assembly
Antigua and Barbuda	Parliament
	Senate	House of Representatives
Bahamas	Parliament
	Senate	House of Assembly
Bahrain	National Assembly
	Consultative Council	Council of Representatives
Barbados	Parliament
	Senate	House of Assembly
Belarus	National Assembly
	Council	House of Representatives
Belize	National Assembly
	Senate	House of Representatives
Bhutan	Parliament
	National Council	National Assembly
Bolivia	Plurinational Legislative Assembly
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Burundi	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Cambodia	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Cameroon	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Central African Republic	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Chile	National Congress
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Colombia	Congress
	Senate	Chamber of Representatives
Czech Republic	Parliament
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
DR Congo	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Congo	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Dominican Republic	Congress
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Equatorial Guinea	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Eswatini	Parliament
	Senate	House of Assembly
France	Parliamentin theFifth French Republic		AllRegional Councilsare unicameral. The regional councillors are elected directly.
	Senate	National Assembly
Gabon	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Grenada	Parliament
	Senate	House of Representatives
Haiti	Parliament
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Indonesia	People's Consultative Assembly		All of the provinces have unicameral parliaments.
	Regional Representative Council	People's Representative Council
Ireland	Oireachtas		A2013 proposal to abolish the Seanadwas defeated at referendum.
	Seanad Éireann(Senate of Ireland)	Dáil Éireann(Assembly of Ireland)
Italy	Parliament		Both houses possess the same powers. The executive is responsible to both houses. All of theregional councilsare unicameral.
	Senate of the Republic	Chamber of Deputies
Ivory Coast	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Jamaica	Parliament
	Senate	House of Representatives
Japan	National Diet
	House of Councillors	House of Representatives
Jordan	Parliament
	Senate	House of Representatives
Kazakhstan	Parliament		All of themäslihats(local assemblies) are unicameral.
	Senate	Mäjilis(Assembly of People)
Kenya	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Lesotho	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Liberia	Legislature
	Senate	House of Representatives
Madagascar	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly
Morocco	Parliament
	House of Councillors	House of Representatives
Myanmar	Pyidaungsu Hluttaw(Assembly of the Union)		All the 14 State and Region Hluttaw (Assemblies) are unicameral.
	Amyotha Hluttaw(House of Nationalities)	Pyithu Hluttaw(House of Representatives)
Namibia	Parliament
	National Council	National Assembly
Netherlands	States General
	Eerste Kamer	Tweede Kamer
Oman	Parliament
	Majlis al-Dawla(Council of State)	Majlis al-Shura(Consultative Assembly)
Palau	National Congress
	Senate	House of Delegates
Paraguay	Congress
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Philippines	Congress		TheBangsamoro Parliamentof theBangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanaoand all Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Council), Sangguniang Panlungsod (City Council), and Sangguiniang Bayan (Municipal Council) are unicameral.
	Senate	House of Representatives
Poland	National Assembly		All of thevoivodeship sejmiksare unicameral.
	Senate	Sejm(Diet)
Romania	Parliament
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Rwanda	Parliament
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Saint Lucia	Parliament
	Senate	House of Assembly
Slovenia	Parliament		In 2008, theConstitutional Court of Sloveniarecognized the Slovenian Parliament as incompletely bicameral.
	National Council	National Assembly
Somaliland	Parliament		Each house has 82 members. The constitution of Somaliland does not clarify how members of the elders house are elected. But the members of the house of representative are elected once every five years.
	House of Elders	House of Representatives
South Africa	Parliament		All of the provincial legislatures are unicameral.
	National Council of Provinces	National Assembly
Spain	Cortes Generales		A fixed number of 208 members of the Senate are elected by citizens, a variable number (currently 57) are appointed by theautonomous regions.Congress of Deputies can override a negative vote of the Senate on a bill with anabsolute majorityaffirmative vote. Moreover, each Spanish autonomous region has its ownunicameral regional parliament,with wide-ranging legislative powers on their own.
	Senate	Congress of Deputies
Tajikistan	Supreme Assembly
	National Assembly	Assembly of Representatives
Thailand	National Assembly
	Senate	House of Representatives
Trinidad and Tobago	Parliament		TheTobago House of Assemblyin the island ofTobagois unicameral.
	Senate	House of Representatives
Turkmenistan	National Council
	People's Council	Assembly
United Kingdom	Parliament		Scotland,WalesandNorthern Irelandhave devolved unicameral legislatures, each with a varying range of powers.
	House of Lords	House of Commons
Uruguay	General Assembly
	Senate	Chamber of Representatives
Uzbekistan	Oliy Majlis
	Senate	Legislative Chamber
Yemen	Parliament
	Shura Council	House of Representatives
Zimbabwe	Parliament
	Senate	National Assembly of Zimbabwe

Historical

Denmark	Rigsdagen		Under the 1849constitutionRigsdagenwas created, with two houses, an upper and a lower house. However, after the1953 referendum,bothRigsdagenand theLandstingwas abolished, making theFolketingthesole chamberof the parliament.
	Landsting(Upper house)	Folketing(Lower house)
Greece	Parliament of the Hellenes		TheSenateas an upper chamber was established by theGreek Constitution of 1844,of theKingdom of Greece,and was abolished by theGreek Constitution of 1864.TheSenatewas reestabished by therepublicanConstitution of 1927,which establishing theSecond Hellenic Republicand was disestablished by the restoration of theKingdom of Greeceat 1935.
	Gerousia(Senate)	Vouli(Chamber of Deputies)
Hungary	Assembly of the Realm		Between 1608 and 1918 the Hungarian Parliament calledOrszággyűlés(Assembly of the Realm) had a bicameral structure, both houses having the same rights in legislature. In 1848 the popular representation was introduced for the Lower Table (replacing the representation of the Estates), while with Act VII of 1885 the Upper Table was slightly transformed, but its historical and partly aristocratic nature was preserved.
	Upper Table (after 1885: House of Lords)	Lower Table (after 1848: House of Representatives)
	Assembly of the Realm		Between 1927 and 1944 the Hungarian Parliament became bicameral again, as Act XXII of 1926 reistanted the upper chamber, now simply calledFelsőház(Upper House). This new house was partly an elected body: the mid-level local governments (counties) and some corporative, cultural and scientific associations (such as, e.g., the universities or the chamber of commerce) got the right to co-opt deputies from their own members. From 1945 on, the Hungarian Parliament is a unicameral legislative body.
	Upper House	House of Representatives
Iceland	Parliament		Once the Icelandic Parliament was restored by royal decree in 1844, it originally operated unicamerally from 1845 to 1874 when it became principally bicameral with an additional third chamber, known as Unified Parliament. However, the third chamber consisted of the union of the other two and deliberated as a single body, which makes some scholars classify it as only a bicameral system. However, the third chamber did have its own speaker distinct from the speakers for the other two chambers. The Icelandic Parliament followed the legislatures of Denmark and Sweden and became unicameral once more in 1991.
	Upper Chamber	Lower Chamber
Korea, South	National Assembly		Under the first constitution (first republic,1948–52), the National Assembly was unicameral. The second and third constitutions (first republic, 1952–60) regulated the National Assembly was bicameral and consisted of the House of Commons and the Senate, but only the House of Commons was established and the House of Commons could not pass a bill to establish the Senate. During the short-livedsecond republic(1960–61), the National Assembly became practically bicameral, but it was overturned by theMay 16 coup.The National Assembly has been unicameral since its reopen in 1963.
	Senate	House of Commons
New Zealand	Parliament		Until 1950, the New Zealand Parliament was bicameral. It became unicameral in 1951, following the abolition of the Legislative Council, leaving the House of Representatives as the sole parliamentary chamber.
	Legislative Council	House of Representatives
Peru	Congress		The1979 Constitution,which marked the return to democracy, followed the trend of previous constitutions by retaining a bicameral legislature. However it was dissolved altogether by PresidentAlberto Fujimoriby his1992 autocoup.Later, under the newer1993 constitution,the bicameral system was replaced by the unicameralCongress of the Republic.
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Portugal	Cortes		During the period of Constitutional Monarchy, the Portuguese Parliament was bicameral. The lower house was the Chamber of Deputies and the upper house was the Chamber of Peers (except during the 1838–1842 period, where a Senate existed instead). With the replacement of the Monarchy by the Republic in 1910, the Parliament continued to be bicameral with a Chamber of Deputies and a Senate existing until 1926.
	Chamber of Peers	Chamber of Deputies
Soviet Union	Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union		TheCongress of People's Deputiessuperseded the Supreme Soviet. The Soviet of the Republics briefly succeeded the Soviet of Nationalities in late 1991.
	Soviet of Nationalities	Soviet of the Union
Sweden	Riksdagen		Until 1970, the SwedishRiksdagwas bicameral. It became unicameral in 1971, but retained the name Riksdag.
	Första kammaren(Upper house)	Andra kammaren(Lower house)
Yugoslavia	Federal Assembly		Between 1974 and 1992.
	Chamber of Republics	Federal Chamber
Turkey	Parliament		It was established with theTurkish constitution of 1961and abolished with theTurkish constitution of 1982,although it did not exist between 1980 and 1982 either as a result of the1980 coup d'état in Turkey.
	Senate of the Republic	National Assembly
Venezuela	Congress		Under the1999 constitution,the bicameral system was replaced by the unicameralNational Assembly of Venezuela.
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
Fiji	Parliament		Original bicameral system suspended by2006 coup.2013 Constitution of Fijiabolished it and replaced it with a single chamber Parliament.
	Senate	House of Representatives
Mauritania	Parliament		Under the 2017 Referendum, the bicameral system was replaced by the unicameral system.
	Senate	National Assembly
Iran	Parliament		Between 1950 and 1979
	Senate	National Assembly
Croatia	Parliament		Between 1990 and 2001
	Chamber of Counties	Chamber of Representatives
Republic of Vietnam	National Assembly		Between 1966 and 1975
	Senate	House of Representatives
Czechoslovakia	National Assembly		Between 1920 and 1939
	Senate	Chamber of Deputies
	Federal Assembly		Under theConstitutional Act on the Czechoslovak Federation,the Federal Assembly replaced the unicameralNational Assemblyin 1969. Its two constituent republics, theCzech (Socialist) Republicand theSlovak (Socialist) Republic,had unicameral legislatures (Czech National CouncilandSlovak National Council). WhenCzechoslovakia was dissolvedat the start of 1993, the Federal Assembly was disbanded. The Czech Republic established their upper house, theSenate,in December 1992.
	Chamber of Nations	Chamber of People

See also

• Federalism
• List of abolished upper houses
• Tricameralism
• Unicameralism

Further reading

• Aroney, Nicholas (2008)."Four Reasons for an Upper House: Representative Democracy, Public Deliberation, Legislative Outputs and Executive Accountability".Adelaide Law Review.29.Retrieved21 February2021.

External links

• Noncontemporaneous Lawmaking: Can the 110th Senate Enact a Bill Passed by the 109th House?,16 Cornell J.L. & Pub. Pol'y 331 (2007).
• Against Mix-and-Match LawmakingAaron-Andrew P. Bruhl,Against Mix-and-Match Lawmaking],16Cornell J.L. & Pub. Pol'y349 (2007).
• Defending the (Not So) Indefensible: A Reply to Professor Aaron-Andrew P. Bruhl,16Cornell J.L. & Pub. Pol'y363 (2007).