What is "senate"

Senate \Sen"ate\, n. [OE. senat, F. s['e]nat, fr. L. senatus, fr. senex, gen. senis, old, an old man. See Senior, Sir.]

1. An assembly or council having the highest deliberative and legislative functions. Specifically:

   1. (Anc. Rom.) A body of elders appointed or elected from among the nobles of the nation, and having supreme legislative authority.

      The senate was thus the medium through which all affairs of the whole government had to pass.
      --Dr. W. Smith.

   2. The upper and less numerous branch of a legislature in various countries, as in France, in the United States, in most of the separate States of the United States, and in some Swiss cantons.

   3. In general, a legislative body; a state council; the legislative department of government.

2. The governing body of the Universities of Cambridge and London. [Eng.]

3. In some American colleges, a council of elected students, presided over by the president of the college, to which are referred cases of discipline and matters of general concern affecting the students. [U. S.]

   Senate chamber, a room where a senate meets when it transacts business.

   Senate house, a house where a senate meets when it transacts business.

c.1200, "legal and administrative body of ancient Rome," from Old French senat or Latin senatus "highest council of the state in ancient Rome," literally "council of elders," from senex (genitive senis) "old man, old" (see senile). Attested from late 14c. in reference to governing bodies of free cities in Europe; of national governing bodies from 1550s; specific sense of upper house of U.S. legislature is recorded from 1775.

n. 1 In some bicameral legislative systems, the upper house or chamber. 2 A group of experienced, respected, wise individuals serving as decision makers or advisors in a political system or in institutional governance, as in a university, and traditionally of advanced age and male.

1. n. assembly possessing high legislative powers

2. the upper house of the United States Congress [syn: United States Senate, US Senate]

The Senate is the upper house of the Parliament of France, presided over by a president. Indirectly elected by elected officials, it represents territorial collectivities of the Republic and French citizens living abroad.

The Senate enjoys less prominence than the lower house, the directly elected National Assembly; debates in the Senate tend to be less tense and generally receive less media coverage.

The Senate is the upper house of the Parliament of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

During the transition period in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2003 - 2006), the Senate, aside from its Legislative role, also had the task of drafting the country's new constitution. This task came to fruition with the adoption of the draft in Parliament in May 2005, and its approval by the Congolese people, in a successful democratic referendum on 18 and 19 December 2005.

The current President of the Senate is Kengo Wa Dondo, elected in May 2007. The Secretary General is David Byaza Sanda Lutala.

The Senate is one of the chambers of the National Assembly of Belize. It has 12 members appointed for a five-year term by the Governor General of Belize.

The Parliament (Barlamane/Parlement) has two chambers. The upper house is the Senate (Majlis al-Shuyukh/Sénat). The Senate has 56 members, 53 members elected for a six-year term by municipal councillors with one third renewed every two years and 3 members elected by Mauritanians abroad.

A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature or parliament. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: Senatus), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: senex meaning "the elder" or "the old one") and therefore allegedly wiser and more experienced members of the society or ruling class.

Thus, the literal meaning of the word "senate" is: Assembly of Elders.

Many countries have an assembly named a senate, composed of senators who may be elected, appointed, have inherited the title, or gained membership by other methods, depending on the country. Modern senates typically serve to provide a chamber of "sober second thought" to consider legislation passed by a lower house, whose members are usually elected.

The Senate ( or simply , literally "First Chamber", or sometimes ) is the upper house of the States General, the legislature of the Netherlands. Its 75 members are elected by the members of the twelve States-Provincial every four years, within three months of the provincial elections.

Members of the Senate are part-timers who often hold other positions as well. They receive an allowance which is about a quarter of the salary of the members of the House of Representatives. Unlike the politically more significant House of Representatives, it meets only once a week. Its members tend to be veteran politicians or part-time politicians at the national level, often having other roles.

It has the right to accept or reject legislative proposals but not to amend them or to initiate legislation. Directly after a bill has been passed by the House of Representatives, it is sent to the Senate and is submitted to a parliamentary committee. The committee decides whether the bill can be immediately put on the agenda of the full chamber or there should first be preparatory study of the bill. If a bill is immediately put on the agenda of the full chamber, it is passed as a formality without a debate.

The Senate ( Dutch: , , ) is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the " upper house" of the Federal Parliament. Created in 1831 as a chamber fully equal to the Chamber of Representatives, it has undergone several reforms in the past, most notably in 1993 and the reform of 2014 following the sixth Belgian state reform. The 2014 elections were the first ones without a direct election of senators. Instead, the new Senate is completely composed of members of community and regional parliaments and co-opted members. It is a chamber of the communities and regions and serves as a platform for discussion and reflection about matters between the different language communities. The Senate now only plays a very minor role in the federal legislative process.

The Senate is the appointed upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago. The Senate sits in the Red House in Port of Spain. The Senate has 31 members all appointed by the President: 16 Government Senators appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, 6 Opposition Senators appointed on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition and 9 Independent Senators appointed in the discretion of the President from outstanding persons who represent other sectors of civil society. The presiding officer, the President of the Senate, is elected from among the Senators who are not Ministers or Parliamentary Secretaries ( Parliamentary secretary). A senator must be at least 25 years old and a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago.

The Senate is the upper chamber of Parliament in Burundi. It consists of no fewer than 37 and no more than 54 members who serve 5-year terms. The current Senate was elected on 24 July 2015 and consists of 43 members.

In each of the country's 17 provinces, two Senators (one Hutu and one Tutsi) are chosen by electoral colleges of communal councilors. Voting takes place using a three round system. In the first two rounds, a candidate must receive a super-majority (two-thirds, or 67% of the vote) to be elected. If no candidate is elected in these rounds, a third round is organized for the two leading candidates, of which the candidate receiving the majority of votes is elected. Three Senators represent the Twa ethnic group and additional members may be co-opted to meet the 30% gender representation quota for women. Former heads of state automatically become Senators.

Senate elections took place on 29 July 2005. The National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD), which obtained the majority of seats in communal elections held in June, won an overwhelming majority (30) of the seats. The Front for Democracy in Burundi (FRODEBU) won 3 seats, while the remaining seat went the National Council for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD), a breakaway faction of the CNDD-FDD. Four former heads of state - Jean-Baptiste Bagaza (PARENA), Pierre Buyoya (UPRONA), Sylvestre Ntibantunganya (FRODEBU), and the current transitional president Domitien Ndayizeye (FRODEBU) will occupy seats in the Senate along with three Twa members. In order to meet the 30% quota for women, eight seats were co-opted giving the chamber of total of 49 seats.

On 19 August 2005, the Senate and National Assembly (acting as an Electoral College) elected Pierre Nkurunziza president of the republic. He took office on 26 August 2005.

Gervais Rufyikiri, a member of the CNDD-FDD, was elected president of the Senate on 17 August 2005. On 25 June 2015, he fled the country saying he felt threatened after opposing President Nkurunziza's bid for a third term. His replacement, Révérien Ndikuriyo, has made remarks comparing political opponents to cockroaches, similar to what politicians did during the Rwandan genocide, raising fears of another genocide.

The Senate is the Upper House of Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda. It consists of 17 members appointed by the Governor General. Ten members are appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, four on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition, one on the advice of the Barbuda Council, one resident of Barbuda on the advice of the Prime Minister, and one at the Governor General's discretion.

The President of the Senate is Senator the Hon. Alincia T. H. Williams-Grant from 2014, with Senator the Hon. Osbert Richard Frederick serving as Vice-President.

The Senate (Sénat) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of the Republic of Congo (Parlement). It has 72 members (six for each of the 12 regions), elected for a six-year term by district, local and regional councils. Prior to the 2008 Senate election, it had 66 members; it was expanded to 72 members at that time to account for the creation of Pointe-Noire Region. Senators serve terms of six years each; terms are staggered so that one-third of the Senate's membership is renewed every two years. A person is ineligible for election to the Senate unless he is a native citizen and at least 50 years old.

The Senate (Sénat) is the upper chamber of the bicameral Parliament of Madagascar. The Senate has 33 members: 22 are indirectly elected, one from each of the 22 regions of Madagascar, and 11 are appointed by the President. As of 9 February 2016 its President is Honoré Rakotomanana.

The Senate existed under the First Republic (1958–1975) and was a weaker body than the National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament. Only the National Assembly could vote on a motion of censure against the government. Two-thirds of the First Republic Senators were elected by provincial and municipal bodies, serving six-year terms (with half of the seats up for election every three years), while the other one-third were appointed by the government.

Under the Second Republic (1975–1993), the Senate was abolished, leaving the National Assembly as the unicameral parliament. Under the Third Republic (1993–present), the Senate was restored, with two-thirds of the Senators being indirectly elected and the other one-third being appointed by the President. As was the case during the First Republic, it cannot vote to censure the government, but it also cannot be dissolved.

Prior to the Senate election held on April 20, 2008, at which time the reduction to 33 members took effect, the Senate had 90 members. Sixty Senators, 10 for each province, were elected by provincial electors, while the other thirty Senators were appointed by the President.

In the April 2008 Senate election, the ruling Tiako i Madagasikara (TIM) won all 22 of the elected seats. The President of TIM, Yvan Randriasandratriniony, was elected as President of the Senate on May 6, 2008; previously, Rajemison Rakotomaharo was President of the Senate from 2002 to 2008. The President of the Senate is the legal successor to the President of the Republic in the event of a vacancy in the latter position.

In March 2009 interim-president Andry Rajoelina dissolved both Houses of Parliament.

On 29 December 2015 elections were held for the Senate, 42 senators were elected by mayors and councillors. These were the first elections since the dissolving of the Senate in 2009. On 1 February 2016 the remaining 21 senators were appointed by Madagascar President Hery Rajaonarimampianina.

The Parliament of Rwanda has two chambers. The upper house is the Senate (Sena). The Senate has 26 members elected or appointed for eight-year terms: 12 elected by provincial and sectoral councils, 8 appointed by the President of the Republic to ensure the representation of historically marginalized communities, 4 by the Forum of Political Parties, and 2 elected by the staff of the universities. Additionally former presidents can request to become a member of the Senate.

The Senate was the upper house of the Parliament of Senegal from 1999 to 2001 and from 2007 to 2012.

The Senate ( Korean hangul: 참의원, hanja: 參議院) was the upper house of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea during its Second Republic. The Senate was established by the Constitution of the Second Republic of Korea, which established a bicameral legislature.

This may refer to an upper house of parliament in Ireland:

• Senate of Northern Ireland (1921–1972)
• Senate of Southern Ireland (1922)
• Seanad Éireann (Irish Free State) (1922–1936)
• Seanad Éireann (1937–present)

The Senate is the upper house of the Parliament of Cameroon.

The Senate was the upper house of the Legislature in British Guiana between 1961 and 1964.

The Senate of Albania was a senate of Albania which independence was declared on 28 November 1912 in Vlorë (then Ottoman Empire, today Republic of Albania). The senate was established on the 4 December 1912 by the Assembly of Vlorë. It was composed of 18 members of the assembly and had advisory role to the government of Albania.

All provinces of the independent Albania were represented by its members in the senate:

• Kosovo: Salih Gjuka, Bedri bej Ipeku, Hajdin bej Draga,
• Monastir: Vehbi Dibra
• Shkodër: Hajredin bej Cakrani, Shefqet bej Daiu, Dervish Biçaku, Xhelal bej Koprencka, Mustafa Merlika-Kruja, Murat bej Toptani,
• Janina: Babë Dud Karbunara, Veli Këlcyra, Kristo Meksi, Eqerem bej Vlora, Ilias Bey Vrioni, Sami Bey Vrioni,
• Albanian colony of Bucharest: Dhimitër Zografi, Dhimitër Berati