Politics of Saudi Arabia

Politics of Saudi Arabia سياسة المملكة العربية السعودية
Emblem of Saudi Arabia
Polity type	Unitary Islamic absolute monarchy
Constitution	Basic Law of Saudi Arabia (De facto) The Quran and the Sunnah (De jure)[a]
Legislative branch
Name	Consultative Assembly[b]
Type	Unicameral
Meeting place	Al Yamamah Palace
Presiding officer	Abdullah ibn Muhammad Al ash-Sheikh, Chairman of the Consultative Assembly
Executive branch
Head of state and government
Title	King
Currently	Salman
Appointer	Allegiance Council
Cabinet
Name	Council of Ministers
Current cabinet	Salman government
Leader	Prime Minister[c]
Deputy leader	First Deputy Prime Minister
Appointer	King
Ministries	23
Judicial branch
Name	Judiciary of Saudi Arabia
Specialized Criminal Court

Politics of Saudi Arabia
Member State of the Arab League
Basic Law
Monarchy King and Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Salman Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Deputy crown prince Vacant Allegiance Council Succession
Government Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman Council of Ministers Consultative Assembly President: Abdullah ibn Muhammad Al ash-Sheikh National Security Council
Legal system The Quran The Hadith Judiciary Capital punishment Freedom of religion Human rights Women's rights LGBT rights Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice
Recent elections Municipal: 2005 2011 2015
Administrative divisions Regions Governorates
Foreign relations Ministry of Foreign Affairs Minister of Foreign Affairs: Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs: Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah Minister of State for Foreign Affairs: Adel al-Jubeir Diplomatic missions of / in Saudi Arabia Nationality law Passport Visa requirements Visa policy
Saudi Arabia portal Other countries
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The politics of Saudi Arabia takes place in the context of a unitary absolute monarchy, along traditional Islamist lines, where the King is both the head of state and government. Decisions are, to a large extent, made on the basis of consultation among the King, the Council of Ministers, Islamic scholars (until the mid-2010s), tribal leaders and other traditional elites of the society. Saudi government is authoritarian,^[d] although some analysts have characterized the government of Mohammed bin Salman as totalitarian.^[e] The Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, is the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia. Under his rule, he has centralized policymaking, purged competing political elites, and dismantled pre-existing power-sharing dynamics.^[1]

The Basic Law of Saudi Arabia contains many characteristics of what might be called a constitution in other countries. The Qur'an and the Sunnah is declared as the official constitution of the country. The kingdom's governance is officially proclaimed to be conducted on the basis of Islamic law (Shari'a). The Allegiance Council is responsible to determine the new King and the new Crown Prince. All citizens of full age have a right to attend, meet, and petition the king directly through the traditional tribal meeting known as the majlis.^[2]

The government is dominated by the vast royal family, the Al Saud, which has often been divided by internal disputes and into factions. The members of the family are the principal political actors allowed by the government. Political participation outside the royal family is limited. Saudi Arabia is one of only four countries (the other being Vatican City, Brunei and Afghanistan) that does not have a separate legislative body.

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