A senator for life is a member of the

senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

or equivalent upper chamber of a legislature who has life tenure. , six

Italian senators Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

out of 206, two out of the 41 Burundian senators, one Congolese senator out of 109, and all members of the British House of Lords (apart from the 26

Lords Spiritual The Lords Spiritual are the bishops of the Church of England who serve in the House of Lords of the United Kingdom. 26 out of the 42 diocesan bishops and archbishops of the Church of England serve as Lords Spiritual (not counting retired archbi ...

who are expected to retire at the age of 70) have lifetime tenure (although Lords can choose to resign or retire or can be expelled in cases of misconduct). Several South American countries once granted lifetime membership to former presidents but have since abolished the practice.

Burundi

Burundi Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili language, Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French language, French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the ...

, former presidents of the Republic serve in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for life. At present there are two of these: Sylvestre Ntibantunganya and Domitien Ndayizeye.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

The 2006 constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo grants lifetime membership in the

to former presidents of the Republic. As of 2019, Joseph Kabila is the only senator for life after serving as president from 2001 to 2019. The 1964 Congolese constitution also provided for life membership in the Senate for former presidents.

Italy

In Italy, a ''senatore a vita'' is a member of the

Italian Senate The Senate of the Republic ( it, Senato della Repubblica), or simply the Senate ( it, Senato), is the upper house of the bicameral Italian Parliament (the other being the Chamber of Deputies). The two houses together form a perfect bicameral sy ...

appointed by the president of the Italian Republic "for outstanding patriotic merits in the social, scientific, artistic or literary field". There may be up to five appointed senators for life at the same time. Former presidents of the Republic are ''

ex officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...

'' senators for life. Currently there are six senators for life (one former president and five appointed).

Paraguay

Former presidents of the Republic, except for those who were impeached from office, are granted the speaking-but-non-voting position of

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for life.

Russia

The lifetime senatorship appeared in the Constitution of Russia as a result of the constitutional reform in 2020. According to the new version of the Constitution, the president has the right to appoint 30 senators for services to the country in the sphere of state and public activity, 7 of whom can be appointed for life. In addition, former presidents (except for those who were impeached from office) become senators for life, but have the right to refuse this office. This was widely seen as a preparation for a future power transition.

Rwanda

The

Rwandan Constitution The Constitution of Rwanda was adopted by referendum on May 26, 2003. It replaced the older Constitution of 1991. The Constitution provides for a presidential system of government, with separation of powers between the three branches. It condemns ...

permits former presidents of the country to become members of the

if they wish, by submitting a request to the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

Former systems

Canada

In a manner reminiscent of the

British House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in ...

, members of the

Canadian Senate The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

were appointed for life. Since the Constitution Act, 1965, however, senators must retire upon reaching the age of 75. Though senators appointed before the amendment were grandfathered in by the legislation, there are no longer any lifetime senators present in the Canadian Senate.

Orville Howard Phillips Orville Howard Phillips (April 5, 1924 – April 24, 2009) was a Canadian dental surgeon, politician, and senator. Early life Born in O'Leary, Prince Edward Island, the son of J. S. and Maude Phillips, he received his D.D.S. from Dalhousie Un ...

, the last senator for life, resigned his seat in 1999.

France

In France, during the Third Republic, the

was composed of 300 members, 75 of which were ''inamovible'' ("unremovable"). Introduced in 1875, the status was abolished for new senators in 1884, but maintained for those already in office.

Émile Deshayes de Marcère Émile-Louis-Gustave Deshayes de Marcère (16 March 1828 – 26 April 1918) was a French politician. Marcère was a deputy in the National Assembly from 1871 to 1884. In 1876 and 1878, he was Minister of the Interior, continuing in post for a fe ...

, the last surviving ''sénateur inamovible'', died in 1918. Overall there had been 116 lifetime senators. In 2005, there was questioning about the status of former presidents of the Republic. According to the constitution of the Fifth Republic, former presidents are ''de jure'' members of the

Constitutional Council Constitutional Council might refer to: * Constitutional Council (Chad) * Constitutional Council (France) * Constitutional Council (Ivory Coast) * Constitutional Council (Sri Lanka) * Constitutional Council (Cambodia) * Constitutional Council (Kaz ...

, which poses a problem of possible partiality. Some members of Parliament and commentators suggested that it should be replaced by a life membership in the

. This proposal was, however, not enacted.

Romania

The 1923 Constitution instituted the membership by right (''senator de drept'') in the

for: * the heir-apparent or heir-presumptive to the throne * Metropolitan bishops and diocesan bishops of the

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

and Greek-Catholic churches * heads of state-recognised religious bodies * the president of the Romanian Academy * former presidents of the Council of Ministers * former ministers with at least six years’ seniority * former presidents of either legislative chamber who held this function for at least eight ordinary sessions * former senators and deputies elected to at least ten legislatures, irrespective of their duration * former presidents of the High Court of Cassation and Justice * reserve and retired generals * former presidents of the National Assemblies at Chişinău, Cernăuţi and Alba Iulia, which proclaimed their respective provinces’ union with Romania in 1918 (''see Union of Bessarabia with Romania, Union of Bukovina with Romania and Union of Transylvania with Romania'') The membership by right was maintained under the 1938 Constitution and it was abolished together with the Senate on July 15, 1946, by the Communist Party-dominated government of Petru Groza. Although the current constitution of Romania re-established the bicameral Parliament in 1991, it did not reinstate the office of senator by right.

South and Central America

The constitutions of a number of countries in South America have granted former presidents the right to be senator for life (''senador vitalicio''), possibly recalling the entirely unelected Senate of

Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...

's theory (see Bolivar's tricameralism). Most of these countries have since excised these provisions as they are increasingly seen as antidemocratic. The Constitution of Paraguay still has such a provision. Former presidents are permitted to speak but not vote. * In Venezuela, lifetime

seats existed from 1961 to 1999. The former presidents who held this position were: Rómulo Betancourt (1964–1981), Raúl Leoni (1969–1972), Rafael Caldera (1974–1994, 1999),

Carlos Andrés Pérez Carlos Andrés Pérez Rodríguez (27 October 1922 – 25 December 2010) also known as CAP and often referred to as '' El Gocho'' (due to his Andean origins), was a Venezuelan politician and the president of Venezuela from 12 March 1974 to 12 M ...

(1979–1989, 1994–1996), Luis Herrera Campins (1984–1999) and Jaime Lusinchi (1989–1999). The

Venezuelan Senate The Senate of Venezuela was the upper house of Venezuela's legislature under its 1961 constitution. Under the 1999 constitution, the bicameral system was replaced by the unicameral National Assembly of Venezuela. However, since 1999 the former cham ...

was abolished with the 1999 constitution. * In Peru, the practice was extant from

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

. Francisco Morales Bermúdez, Fernando Belaúnde Terry and

Alan García Pérez Alan may refer to: People *Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname * Alan (given name), an English given name **List of people with given name Alan ''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.'' *A ...

were the only lifetime senators until the abolition of the senate in 1993 and the introduction of a unicameral parliament. * In Chile, under the 1980 Constitution, two ex- presidents have become senators-for-life:

Augusto Pinochet Ugarte Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (, , , ; 25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean general who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, first as the leader of the Military Junta of Chile from 1973 to 1981, being declared President of ...

(1998–2002) and Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle (2000–2006). Pinochet's

parliamentary immunity Parliamentary immunity, also known as legislative immunity, is a system in which politicians such as president, vice president, governor, lieutenant governor, member of parliament, member of legislative assembly, member of legislative council, s ...

protected him from prosecution for human rights violations until the

Chilean Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Chile is the highest court in Chile. It also administers the lower courts in the nation. It is located in the capital Santiago. In the Chilean system, the court lacks the broader power of judicial review—it cannot set bindin ...

revoked it in 2000. The provision was abolished by constitutional reforms in 2005. * In Nicaragua, the 1974 Constitution granted lifetime membership in that country's Senate to former presidents of the Republic.

Brazil

The senators of the Empire of Brazil (1826–1889) were appointed for life by the Emperor from a list of three, indirectly elected, candidates for each constituency. For details, see Senate of Brazil: History. There were about 250 senators of the Empire of Brazil. For the list of senators, see :pt:Lista de senadores do Brasil

Somalia

While the 1960 constitution of the Somali Republic (1960–1969) did not provide for a senate (the legislature, known as the National Assembly, was unicameral), it did grant lifetime membership in the legislature to ex- presidents of the Republic.

Aden Adde Aden Abdulle Osman Daar ( so, Aadan Cabdulle Cismaan Dacar, ar, آدم عبد الله عثمان دعر) (December 9, 1908 – June 8, 2007), popularly known as Aden Adde, was a Somali politician who served as the first president of the S ...

was the only person eligible to hold this position.

United States

During the

Constitutional Convention Constitutional convention may refer to: * Constitutional convention (political custom), an informal and uncodified procedural agreement *Constitutional convention (political meeting), a meeting of delegates to adopt a new constitution or revise an e ...

of 1787,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

delegate

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first United States secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795. Born out of wedlock in Charlest ...

proposed that all members of the U.S. Senate, which was at time appointed by

state legislatures A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Stat ...

and intended to check the power of the popularly elected House of Representatives, be appointed for life as a safeguard against "amazing violence and turbulence of the democratic spirit." His views did not prevail, and the final U.S. Constitution specified six-year terms for senators.

Larry J. Sabato Larry Joseph Sabato (; born August 7, 1952) is an American political scientist and political analyst. He is the Robert Kent Gooch Professor of Politics at the University of Virginia, where he is also the founder and director of the Center for P ...

, a political scientist at the University of Virginia, proposed establishing lifetime Senate appointments for former presidents and former vice presidents as part of a broad set of political proposals in his 2007 book, '' A More Perfect Constitution''.

Notes

External links

Senato.it: Senatori a vita
{{in lang, it — Italian lifetime senators (XVII legislation – June 2017) Senators for life