The Egyptian Senate or Shura council (Majlis al Shura) is, with the Peoples Assembly, one of the two legislative chambers in Egypt. According to articles 194 and 195, the Shura Council is concerned with the laws study and proposal according to the principles defined by the 1952 revolution, consisting of national unity, social peace to protect the alliance of the working forces of the people and socialist gains as well as the basic components of society, it′s supreme values, rights and public freedoms and duties.

The Shura Council is Consulted in the Following. It submits it′s opinion to the President of the Republic and the People′s Assembly.

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Proposals for the amendment of one or more articles of the constitution .

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Draft of the general plan for the socio-economic development.

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All treaties affecting the territorial integrity of the State or those concerning sovereignty rights and peace treaties and alliances.

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Draft laws referred to the Council by the President of the Republic.

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Articles 102 and 129 stipulate that at least 20 members of the People′s Assembly and the Shura Council as well may request to put forward a public matter for plenary debate relating to the general policy of the State or its policy regarding Arab or foreign affairs.

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Article 103 second and fourth paragraphs stipulates the possibility for the Assembly′s Bureau to request for a plenary debate on the agenda of the first sitting following its representation even at the first sitting.

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Article 130 stipulates that the members of the People′s Assembly and the members of the Shura Council as well may present a motion carrying a wish related to be conveyed to the Prime Minister, his deputies and the ministers.

The first Shura Council was established by Muhamad Ali. His son, Khedive Isma′il, instituted the Shura Council of Deputies. Under the British occupation, the constitution was replaced by the Regulative Law, which kept as legislative representation, the Shura Council and the Public Assembly. However with no effective power. After the independence from the British Mandate (28 february 1922), the new consitution restituted the legislative powers to Parliement by forming a bicameral system between the Senate & the House of Representatives. Between 1952 (officers revolution) and 1980 there was no Shura Council. A second chamber was added to the legislature in the late 1970s when the Central Committee of the ASU was transformed into the Consultative Council, essentially an advisory chamber of notables and retired officials. The amendment of the 1971 permanent constitution in 1980, provided the creation of the Shura Council, with its organization and functions.

PART SEVEN New Rulings CHAPTER I The Shoura Assembly* Article 194

The Shoura Assembly is concerned with the study and proposal of what it deems necessary to preserve the principles of the July 23, 1952 Revolution and the May 15, 1971 Revolution, to consolidate national unity and social peace, to protect the alliance of the working forces of the people and the socialist gains as well as the basic components of society, its supreme values, its rights and liberties and its public duties, and to entrench the democratic socialist system and widen its scope.

Article 195

The Shoura Assembly shall be consulted in the following:

1- Proposals for the amendment for one or more articles of the Constitution.

2- Draft laws complementary to the Constitution.

3- Draft of the general plan for social and economic development.

4- Peace treaties, alliances and all treaties affecting the territorial integrity of the State or those concerning sovereignty rights.

5- Draft laws referred to the Assembly by the President of the Republic.

6- Whatever matters referred to the Assembly by the President of the Republic relative to the general policy of the State or its policy regarding Arab or foreign affairs.

The Assembly shall submit to the President of the Republic and the People′s Assembly its opinion such matters.

Article 196
The Shoura Assembly shall be composed of a number of members defined by the law, not less than 132 members.

Two thirds of the members shall be elected by direct secret public balloting, half of whom at least must be workers and farmers.

The President of the Republic shall appoint the other third.

Article 197

The law shall determine the electoral constituencies of the Shoura Assembly, the number of members in every constituency, and the necessary conditions stipulated in the elected or appointed members of the Shoura Assembly.

Article 198

The term of membership of the Shoura Assembly is six years, whereas renewed election and appointment of 50% of the total number of members, whether elected or appointed, is every three years as defined by law.

It is always possible to re-elect or re-appoint those membership has expired.

Article 199

The Shura Assembly shall elect a president and two vice presidents at its first ordinary annual session for a period of three years.

If one of these offices becomes vacant, the Assembly shall elect a successor for the rest of the term.

Article 200

No member can hold office in both People′s Assembly and the Shura Assembly at one and the same time.

Article 201

The Prime Minister and his deputies, the ministers and government officials shall not be held responsible to the Shura Assembly.

Article 202

The president of the Republic has the right to make a statement upon the general policy of the State or upon any other matter before a joint meeting of the People′s Assembly and the Shura Assembly, headed by the Speaker of the People′s Assembly.

The President of the Republic has the right to make whatever statements he wishes before the Shoura Assembly.

Article 203

The prime minister and the ministers and other government officials may make statements before the Shoura Assembly or before one of its committees upon a subject that comes within his competence.

The Prime Minister and his deputies and other government officials shall be heard by the Shura Assembly and its committees upon their request, and they may seek the assistance of any government official, as they see fit.

However, the vote of the minister or government official is not valid upon any count of votes unless he is a member.

Article 204

The president of the Republic may not dissolve the Shura Assembly except when necessary, while such a decision should comprise a call to hold new elections for the Shura Assembly within a period of sixty days from the date of its dissolution.

The Assembly shall hold its first meeting ten days from the date of its election.

Article 205

The following articles of the Constitution shall apply to the Shura Assembly:

(89, 90, 91, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 104, 105, 106, 107, 129, 130, 134), insofar as they are not incompatible with the stipulations cited in this part:

The Shura Assembly and its President shall exercise the competencies specified in the aforementioned articles.

Article 89

Employees of the State and of the public sector nominate themselves for membership in the People′s Assembly.

The member of the people′s Assembly shall devote himself to membership in the Assembly except in cases specified by law.

His post or work shall be held over for him in accordance with the provisions of the law.

Article 90

The member of the People′s Assembly shall take the following oath before the Assembly before entering upon his duties:

"I swear by God Almighty, that I shall preserve the safety of the nation and the Republican regime, shall attend to the interests of the people and shall respect the Constitution and law".

Article 91

Members of the People′s Assembly shall receive a remuneration determined by the law.

Article 93

The People′s Assembly shall be the only authority competent to decide upon the validity of its members.

A Court of Causation shall be competent to investigate the validity of contestation presented to the Assembly, on being referred to it by the President of the Assembly.

The contestation shall be referred to the Court of Cassation within fifteen days as from the date on which the Assembly was informed of it, while the investigation shall be completed within ninety days from the date on which the contestation is referred to the Court of Cassation.

The result of the investigation and the decision reached by the Court shall be submitted to the Assembly to decide upon the validity of the contestation within sixty days from the date of submission of the result of the investigation to the Assembly.

The membership will not be deemed invalid except by a decision taken by a majority of two-thirds of the Assembly members.

Article 94

If the seat of a member becomes vacant before the end of his term, a successor shall be elected or appointed to it, within sixty days from the date of the communication to the Assembly of the occurrence of the vacancy.

The term of the new member shall extend until the end of the term of his predecessor.

Article 95

No member of the People′s Assembly shall, during his mandate, purchase or rent any State property; or lease or sell to the State or barter with it regarding any part of his property, or conclude a contract with the State in his capacity as entrepreneur, importer or contractor.

Article 96

No membership in the People′s Assembly shall be revoked except on the grounds of loss of confidence or status or of one of the conditions of membership, or the loss of the member′s status as a worker or farmer upon which he was elected or the violation of the member′s mandate.

The membership shall be deemed invalid on the grounds of a decision taken by a majority of two-thirds of the Assembly members.

Article 97

The People′s Assembly alone may accept the resignation of its members .

Article 98

Members of the People′s Assembly shall not be censured for any opinions or thoughts expressed by them in the performance of their tasks in the Assembly or its committees.

Article 99

No member of the People′s Assembly shall be subject to a criminal prosecution without the permission of the Assembly except in cases of flagrant delicto.

If the Assembly is not in session, the permission of the President of the Assembly must be taken.

The Assembly must be notified of the measures taken in its first subsequent session.

Article 100

The seat of the People′s Assembly shall be Cairo.

However, in exceptional circumstances, it may meet another city, at the request of the President of the Republic or the majority of the Assembly members.

Any meeting of the Assembly in other than its designated seat is illicit and the resolutions passed in it shall be considered invalid.

Article 101

The President of the Republic shall convoke the People′s Assembly for its ordinary annual session before the second Thursday of November.

If it is not convoked, the Assembly shall meet, by force of the Constitution, on the said day.

The session of the ordinary meeting shall continue for at least seven months.

Article 102

The President of the Republic may call the People′s Assembly to an extraordinary meeting, in case of necessity, or upon a request signed by a majority of the Assembly members.

The President of the Republic shall announce the dismissal of the extraordinary meeting.

Article 103

The People′s assembly shall elect, in the first meeting of its ordinary annual session, a president and a vice-president for the term of the session.

If the seat of anyone of them is vacated, the Assembly shall elect a replacement, whose term will last until the end of his predecessors term.

Article 104

The People′s Assembly shall lay down its own rules of procedure organising the manner of the fulfilment of its tasks.

Article 105

The people′s Assembly alone shall be entitled to preserve order inside it.

The President of the Assembly shall be entrusted with this task.

Article 106

The meetings of the People′s Assembly shall be public.

However, a meeting in camera may be held at the request of the president of the Republic or of the government or of its Prime Minister or at least twenty of its members.

The Assembly shall then decide whether the debate on the question submitted to it shall take place in a public meeting or in a meeting in camera.

Article 107

The meeting of the Assembly shall be considered invalid if the majority of its members are not present.

The resolution of the Assembly shall be adopted by an absolute majority of the attending members, in cases other than those for which a specific majority is required.

Every article of the draft laws shall be put to a vote.

In case of a tie vote, the question on which the debate had taken place shall be rejected.


Article 129

Any twenty members, at least, of the Peaple′s Assembly may ask for the discussion of a public question to ascertain the government′s policy regarding such a question.

Article 130


The members of the peaple′s Assembly shall be entitled to express their opinions concerning public question before the Prime Minister or any of his deputies or of the Ministers.


Article 176

The law shall organise the way of formation of the Supreme Constitutional Court, and prescribe the conditions required in its members, their rights and immunities.

The Shoura Assembly member is elected by the absolute majority of valid votes cast in the elections .

According to the constitution, the number of Shura members should neither exceed 310 nor shall it be less than 231. Total number of the current Shura Council members is 264 as defined in Article 1 of Law 120 of 1980, (amended by Law 10 of 1989 and Law 8 of 1995 ) 13 of which are women. According to article 196 of the constitution and according to the law, two thirds of the members (176) are elected by the direct secret ballot half of whom at least must be workers and farmers. The remaining third is appointed by the President of the Republic. The term of membership of the Shoura Assembly is six years. After three years, half the number of elected or appointed members may be changed unless they are re-elected or re-appointed (article 198).

Membership of both the People’s and Shoura Assemblies is incompatible.

The Speaker of the Shura Council is the Chairman of the Supreme Press Council.

Conditions of Candidature:

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Egyptian Nationality and an Egyptian father.

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The age of the candidate on the date of the election or nomination should not be less than 35.

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The Candidate should have completed his military service or have a valid certificate of exemption Methods of Election.

The Assembly cannot be dissolved except by a Presidential decision and in case of necessity . The dissolution decision should comprise measures for holding elections within a period of sixty days while the Assembly wi1l be convoked within the ten days following the elections.
Members of the Assembly have Parliamentary Immunity, for no criminal procedures may be taken against any member without a prior permission from the Assembly or from its Speaker if such a measure is taken between sessions.