Kuwait strips naturalised citizens of voting rights

Kuwait's emir approved a decree Sunday barring naturalised citizens from voting, Kuwait's official KUNA news agency reported.

Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah issued the decree amending parts of Kuwait's nationality law. KUNA said the amendment states that people who acquired Kuwaiti nationality through naturalisation do not have the right to vote, run for office or be appointed to any parliamentary body.

Naturalised Kuwaitis previously could vote 30 years after acquiring nationality, but they were already barred from running for office or being appointed.

Kuwait launched a campaign of citizenship revocations in 2024 that has affected tens of thousands of people. The measures abolished naturalisation by marriage, which applied only to women, revoked citizenships granted to wives since 1987, and targeted people with dual nationality or those accused of obtaining citizenship fraudulently.

The changes followed Sheikh Mishal's dissolution of parliament and suspension of parts of the constitution after he took power in December 2023. Analysts told AFP the policy appears aimed at restricting nationality to people with blood ties to Kuwait and could reshape the electorate after years of political crisis.