Yemen, officially known as the Republic of Yemen, is a country whose political system is formally a presidential republic, wherein the President of Yemen is the head of state and the Prime Minister is the head of government. The President is elected by popular vote from at least two candidates endorsed by at least 15% of the House of Representatives, while the Prime Minister is appointed by the President and approved by the Parliament. The legislative power is vested in a bicameral legislature, which consists of the House of Representatives and the Shura Council.

The political situation in Yemen is highly complex and fraught due to an ongoing conflict that began in 2015. The country is effectively split with the internationally recognized government led by President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi controlling parts of the south and east, and the Houthi movement (also known as Ansar Allah) controlling the north and west, including the capital, Sanaa.

The conflict has its roots in a failed political transition supposed to bring stability to Yemen following an Arab Spring uprising that forced its longtime authoritarian president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, to hand over power to Mr. Hadi, his deputy. Yemen’s instability has been exacerbated by intervention from external actors, with a Saudi-led coalition launching a military campaign in 2015 to restore the Hadi government, leading to a humanitarian crisis. The complex and multifaceted nature of Yemen’s conflict, including separatist movements in the south and the ongoing threat of Islamist groups like Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, make the political situation extremely volatile.