to the Parliament against the new president Charles Rivière-Hérard. But under his successor, Philippe Guerrier, the Parliament was temporarily replaced by a smaller appointed Council of State which held legislative power for the next two years until it was turned into a Senate in 1846 under Jean-Baptiste Riché. Under the 1964 and 1971 Duvalier constitutions, the body became a unicameral Legislature with the abolition of the Senate. The Senate was subsequently restored in 1988. Houses Senate The Senate consists of thirty seats, with three members from each of the ten administrative departments. Prior to the creation of the department of Nippes in 2003, there were twenty-seven seats. Senators are elected by popular vote to six-year terms, with one-third elected every two years. After the elections of 2000, twenty-six of the then twenty-seven seats were held by Jean-Bertrand Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas party. The Senate was not in session following the overthrow of Aristide's government in February 2004. An interim government was put in place following the rebellion, and the remaining Senators were not recognised during that time. The Senate was re-established and elections were held on 21 April 2006. In the Senate elections of 2009 LESPWA won five seats, and five parties won one seat each (OPL, AAA, FUSION, KONBA, UCADDE), as well as an independent. Chamber of Deputies The Chamber of Deputies has 119 members who are elected by popular vote to four-year terms. Candidates from Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas party took seventy-three of the then eighty-three seats in the 2000 elections. Following the coup d'état and the overthrow of the government in February 2004, the Chamber of Deputies remained empty. It was re-established along with the Senate, and elections were held on 21 April 2006. National Assembly The National Assembly () is a joint session of Parliament. The National Assembly is convened for specific purposes laid out in the Constitution. Meetings of the National Assembly are presided over by the President of the Senate, with the President of the Chamber of Deputies assisting. The Secretaries of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies also serve as Secretaries of the National Assembly. The National Assembly building was built in 1949 for the Exposition internationale du bicentenaire de Port-au-Prince and was destroyed during the earthquake on 12 January 2010. Legislative Palace The Legislative Palace () was among the many structures which were virtually destroyed by the earthquake on 12 January 2010. Parliament