On April 17, Kuwait’s leadership announced the dissolution of the National Assembly, or Parliament, setting up new parliamentary elections for June 6. The Parliament had only been reinstated in March following a Constitutional Court ruling overturning a previous dissolution. Political turnover is nothing new in Kuwait, which more than any other country in the Gulf maintains a degree of power sharing and popular governance. But with the emirate holding its third parliamentary elections in as many years, frustration with the country’s political gridlock is mounting, including among the merchant class.  

How did Kuwait end up in this precarious political moment? What is at the root of the confrontation among the ruling family, the Parliament, and the merchant class? And what is to be made of the judiciary overruling the actions of a Gulf sovereign? Will new National Assembly elections lead to a reduction in tensions and a way out of political gridlock?