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One chamber or two?

A bicameral parliament has two chambers, such as a House and a Senate, usually so that a second chamber can represent regions or review laws. A unicameral parliament has one. Federal countries are more often bicameral, but many unitary states also keep two chambers.

Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.

Does the national parliament have one chamber, or two?

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Two chambers (bicameral) (68)

One chamber (unicameral) (76)

Read this before you quote the map

  • The second chamber is often weaker than the first, and in some countries it is appointed, not elected.
  • Countries change this occasionally by amending the constitution, so check the current constitution before relying on it.
  • Only countries we have checked are coloured.

Sources

Cite this map

TheLawToKnow Tools. Legal World Maps: One chamber or two?. https://tools.thelawtoknow.com/legal-world-maps/one-chamber-or-two.

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