Executive branch: president, vice president, prime minister, three deputy prime ministers, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament (Jatiya Sangsad)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Leaders:
Chief of State—President Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD
(since 11 December 1983, elected 15 October 1986); Vice President
Moudad AHMED (since 12 August 1989);
Head of Government—Prime Minister Qazi Zafar AHMED (since 12
August 1989)
Political parties and leaders: Jatiyo Party, Hussain Mohammad
Ershad; Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Begum Ziaur Rahman; Awami League, Sheikh
Hasina Wazed; United People's Party, Kazi Zafar Ahmed; Democratic League,
Khondakar Mushtaque Ahmed; Muslim League, Khan A. Sabur; Jatiyo Samajtantrik
Dal (National Socialist Party), M. A. Jalil; Bangladesh Communist Party
(pro-Soviet), Saifuddin Ahmed Manik; Jamaat-E-Islami, Ali Khan
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
President—last held 15 October 1986 (next to be held October
1991);
results—President Hussain Mohammad Ershad received 83.5% of vote;
Parliament—last held 3 March 1988 (next to be held March 1993); results—percent of vote by party NA; seats—(330 total, 300 elected and 30 seats reserved for women) Jatiyo Party won 256 out of 300 seats
Communists: 5,000 members (1987 est.)