The Nitijela ( ) is the legislature of the Marshall Islands. It has 33 members, elected for a four-year term in nineteen single-seat and five multi-seat constituencies. The last election was 20 November 2023. Elections in the Marshall Islands are officially nonpartisan, but most members of the are affiliated with one of the four active political parties in the Marshall Islands: Aelon Kein Ad (AKA), (KEA), United People's Party (UPP), and United Democratic Party (UDP).
A bicameral Marshall Islands Congress was established in July 1950. The two chambers were the House of Iroij and the House of Assembly. Kabua Kabua was the president of the House of Iroij in 1953. Atlan Anien was the president of the House of Assembly in 1953.
The Congress was reformulated as unicameral in 1958. Members were elected for a 4-year term. The congress was chaired by Atlan Anien in 1959, Amata Kabua in 1962, and Dwight Heine in 1963 and 1964.
The legislature, NitijeüÃÂ, was established in its current form in 1979 by the Constitution of the Marshall Islands.
On 26 August 2025, the parliament building, library and archives were destroyed in a fire. Half of the building was burned down, while the other half remains in an unusable state. The fire started around midnight or shortly after on the morning of the 26th, and the building was fully covered in flames by the time a fire truck arrived. A Marshallese government spokesperson stated that early signs indicate that the fire could have originated from a container trailer stationed next to the building. According to former health secretary Jack Niedenthal, local firefighters lack resources and were not equipped to handle large fires. RNZ reported that the Marshallese fire department is "pretty nonexistent" besides an airport firefighter team, which was unable to arrive at the building "for over an hour".
As the fire occurred while the legislature is in session, the legislature was left without a place to meet. In the following days, it was announced that the legislature would resume session the next week, temporarily using the International Conference Center building in Majuro. Many files were not backed up and, according to RNZ, "it would take people weeks to figure out what they had lost and what they could access." It was confirmed that documents of historical significance, such as the history of the first constitutional convention of the Marshall Islands, as well as original copies of early laws passed by the NitijeüÃÂ, were destroyed.
In response to the fire, Taiwan stated that it will "provide necessary assistance in a timely manner." Marshallese president Hilda Heine announced that her cabinet approved a plan to begin construction on a new parliament building by the end of 2025, taking priority over previous plans to construct a new capital facility. Amata Coleman Radewagen, the US House of Representatives delegate for American Samoa, promised to lobby the US government to provide assistance.
The salary of the speaker is set to US$35,000 annually.
The twenty-four electoral districts into which the country is divided correspond to the inhabited islands and atolls. There are four political parties in the Marshall Islands: Aelon Kein Ad (AKA), Kien Eo Am (KEA), United People's Party (UPP), and United Democratic Party (UDP). Control is shared by the AKA and the KEA.
The has 7 permanent standing committees with oversight authority and legislative authority. All committees have 9 members.
The is supported by various staff.
The clerk is the administrative head of the legislature, with authority to approve related matters. The clerk prepares the 's business and serves as the legislature's secretary, keeping minutes and publishing them.
The current clerk is Morean Watak, and Carl Alik is her assistant clerk.
The Office of the Legislative Counsel was established in 1981. The office provides legal advice to MPs and the speaker, as well as providing legislative drafting services. The legislative counsel also serves as the Commissioner of the Marshall Islands Revised Code if the Cabinet has not appointed a commissioner.
The current legislative counsel is Joe Lomae.