Constitution of Eswatini

Eswatini's 2005 constitution is currently in force, following the 1968 constitution that King Sobhuza II suspended by decree in 1973 and an unpromulgated 1978 draft that was never formally presented to the public; the 2005 text emerged from a drafting committee the king appointed in 2001 and a draft released for public comment in 2003. It establishes an absolute monarchy in which the king holds supreme executive, legislative and judicial power alongside a cabinet and a legislature made up of a sixty five seat House of Assembly and a thirty seat Senate. Political parties remain banned, a prohibition that traces to the 1978 constitution, and candidates for the elected seats stand as individuals every five years rather than as party representatives.