At stake in this election:

• 30 seats in the Chamber of Senators (Cámara de Senadores)

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Tabare VAZQUEZ *
• Head of Government: President Tabare VAZQUEZ
• Assembly: Uruguay has a bicameral General Assembly (Asamblea General) consisting of the Chamber of Senators (Cámara de Senadores) with 31 seats and the Chamber of Representatives (Cámara de Representantes) with 99 seats.

* The electoral system is two-round.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by absolute majority vote to serve a 5-year term.
• In the Chamber of Senators (Cámara de Senadores), 30 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system to serve 5-year terms and 1 member is ex officio *. In the Chamber of Representatives (Cámara de Representantes) 99 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system to serve 5-year terms.**

* There is one nationwide district. One party may field multiple lists. Under the double simultaneous vote (DSV), the voter must vote for one of the lists fielded by the same party she has chosen in a Presidential contest. The Vice President is ex officio presiding officer of the Senate.

** There are 19 multi-member constituencies corresponding to the country's departments. The minimum magnitude is two. One party may field multiple lists. Under the double simultaneous vote (DSV), the voter must vote for one of the lists fielded by the same party she has chosen in a Presidential contest.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: Partido Colorado / Partido Colorado (PC)
  • Leader: Pedro BORDABERRY
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Senators election: 0
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 17
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 0
• Coalition: Broad Front / Frente Amplio (FA)
  • Leader: Jorge BROVETTO
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Senators election: 0
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 50
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 0
• Party: National Party / Partido Nacional
  • Leader: Luis Alberto LACALLE
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Senators election: 0
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 30
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 0
• Party: Independent Party / Partido Independiente
  • Leader: N/A
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Senators election: 0
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 2
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 0
• Coalition: Popular Assembly / Asamblea Popular
  • Leader: N/A
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Senators election: 0
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 0
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 0

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 3,494,382 (July 2009 est.)
• Registered Voters: 2,563,250 (October 2009 )

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 1,741,159 (2009)

·         Is Uruguay a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (30 March 1981)

·         Has Uruguay ratified CEDAW: Yes (9 October 1981)

·         Gender Quota: Yes

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 14 (Chamber of Representatives); 4 (Senate) following the 2009 elections

·         Human Development Index Position: 52 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A

Disability Data:

·         Is Uruguay a signatory to CRPD: Yes (3 April 2007)

·         Has Uruguay ratified CRPD: Yes (11 February 2009)

·         Population with a disability: 524,157 (est.)