Legislator Explained

A legislator, or lawmaker, is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people, but they can be appointed, or hereditary. Legislatures may be supra-national (for example, the European Parliament), national (for example, the Japanese Diet), sub-national, such as provinces, or local (for example, local governments).

Overview

The political theory of the separation of powers requires legislators to be independent individuals from the members of the executive and the judiciary. Certain political systems adhere to this principle, others do not. In the United Kingdom and other countries using the Westminster system, for example, the executive is formed almost exclusively from legislators (members of the parliament), and the executive Cabinet itself has delegated legislative power.

In continental European jurisprudence and legal discussion, "the legislator" () is the abstract entity that has produced the laws. When there is room for interpretation, the intent of the legislator will be questioned, and the court is directed to rule in the direction it judges to best fit the legislative intent, which can be difficult in the case of conflicting laws or constitutional provisions.

Terminology

The local term for a legislator is usually a derivation of the local term for the relevant legislature. Typical examples include

• Parliament: member of parliament
• Assembly: member of the assembly
• Legislature: member of the legislature
• Congress: member of congress
• Senate: senator
• House of Representatives: representative
• The generic term "deputy" may also be used, deriving from the concept that the legislator is "deputising" for the electorate of their electoral district.

By country

This is an incomplete list of terms for a national legislator:

Country	Title	Legislature
Algeria		People's National Assembly
Argentina		Chamber of Deputies
		Senate
		Several provincial Chambers of Deputies
Belarus	Belarusian: Дэпутат|italics=no	House of Representatives
Belgium	Provincial executive member: (Dutch) / (French) / (German)	Deputation / Provincial College (provincial executive body)
	In French, is sometimes also used to denote a member of parliament.	Chamber of Representatives or a regional parliament
		Chamber of Deputies
Brazil		Legislative Assemblies
		Chamber of Deputies
		Federal Senate
Bulgaria	()	National Assembly
Canada	Senator,^[1]	Senate of Canada
	Member of Parliament (MP)^[2] /	House of Commons of Canada
Chile		Chamber of Deputies
		Senate
China		National People's Congress
Colombia		Departamental Assemblies
Costa Rica		Legislative Assembly
Denmark		Folketinget
Dominican Republic		Chamber of Deputies of the Dominican Republic
Ecuador	(before 2007, )	National Assembly
El Salvador		Legislative Assembly
France		National Assembly
		Senate
Germany		Bundestag
Guatemala		Congress of the Republic
	People's Deputy	States of Guernsey
Haiti	^[3]	Chamber of Deputies
Honduras		National Congress
India	Member of Parliament	Lok Sabha
		Islamic Consultative Assembly
	Senators / Irish: Seanadóirí	Seanad Éireann
	Teachta Dála (TD)	Dáil Éireann
Italy	Italian: Deputato	Chamber of Deputies
	Deputy	States Assembly
Kazakhstan	Kazakh: Депутат|italic=no (Kazakh: deputat)	Kazakh: [[Mäjilis]]|italic=no
Latvia		Saeima
Lebanon	/ (, or deputy)	Parliament
Luxembourg	/	Chamber of Deputies
Mexico		Chamber of Deputies
Netherlands		Provincial executive (European Netherlands)
		(Caribbean Netherlands)
Nicaragua		National Assembly
	Deputy ^[4] ^[5]	Supreme People's Assembly
Panama		National Assembly
Paraguay
Portugal		Assembly of the Republic
Romania		Chamber of Deputies
		State Duma and regional legislative bodies
Somalia	Deputy	Federal Parliament
Spain		Congress of Deputies
	Senator	Senate
	Member of the H.R.	House of Representatives
Ukraine	People's Deputy of Ukraine ()
	Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal	House of Lords
	Member of Parliament (MP)	House of Commons
	Senator	Senate
	Representative; Congressperson	House of Representatives
		Chamber of Representatives
		National Assembly
		National Assembly

Substitute legislator

Some legislatures provide each legislator with an official "substitute legislator" who deputises for the legislator in the legislature if the elected representative is unavailable. Venezuela, for example, provides for substitute legislators () to be elected under Article 186 of its 1999 constitution.^[6] Ecuador, Panama, and the U.S. state of Idaho also have substitute legislators.^[7]

See also

• List of legislatures by country

Notes and References

1. https://www.sencanada.ca/en/senators/ Senators
2. https://learn.parl.ca/sites/Learn/default/en_CA/Guide-to-the-Canadian-House-of-Commons/Role "Guide to the Canadian House of Commons: The Role of a Member of Parliament
3. Web site: Chambre des députés . https://web.archive.org/web/20180831233552/http://parlementhaitien.ht/chambre-des-deputes/ . Aug 31, 2018 . Le Parlement haitien.
4. Web site: Socialist Constitution . Chapter IV, Section 1, Article 89 . 6 March 2021 .
5. Web site: ko:사회주의헌법 . 제6장, 제1절, 제89조 . 6 March 2021 . http://www.naenara.com.kp/main/index/ko/politics?arg_val=leader3. ko.
6. Web site: Asamblea Nacional Constituyente . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140417173551/http://www.tsj.gov.ve/legislacion/constitucion1999.htm . 2014-04-17 . 2014-04-12 . Tribunal Supremo de Justicia.
7. News: Russell . Betsy . Idaho's substitute law unique . 16 October 2022 . Spokesman Review . 16 March 2014.