Mali's constitution provides for a multi-party democracy, with the only restriction being a prohibition against parties based on ethnic, religious, regional, or gender lines. In addition to those political parties represented in the National Assembly, others are active in municipal councils.OverviewUntil the military coup of March 22, 2012 and a second military coup in December 2012 the politics of Mali took place in a framework of a , whereby the. The consists of the and the, led by the. Under Mali's, the president is chief of state and of the. The is the sole arm of the Malian government. It has 160 members, who are elected directly for a five-year term by. 147 members are elected in single-seat and 13 member.