This is a list of the Northwest Territories Legislative Assemblies dates and legislative sessions from 1870–present. The current capital is Yellowknife since 1967. There have been twenty-eight legislatures since becoming a territory in 1870.
| Assembly | Duration | General Election | Elected members | Appointed members | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Temporary North-West Council |
1870 – 1876 | — | — | up to 18 | Vacant until 28 December 1872. Council was legally required to have between 7 and 15 appointed members. Its initial sitting had 11 members and at times had up to 18. |
| 1st Council of the Northwest Territories 9 sessions |
1876 – 1888 | — | 14 | 6 | Elected members won their seats in scattered by-elections and the 1885 elections. Elected members were from eight single-member ridings and three two-member ridings. Not all of the Territory was represented; elections were centred on the most populated areas. |
| 1st North-West Legislative Assembly 3 sessions |
1888 – 10 October 1891 |
1888 election | 22 | 3 | Six members were elected in two-member ridings and 16 in single-member ridings, but they did not cover the entire Territory. This Assembly also had three judges appointed as members to be legal experts. |
| 2nd North-West Legislative Assembly 5 sessions |
1891 – 1 October 1894 |
1891 election | 26 | — | Two members were elected in a two-member riding and the rest in single-member ridings, but they did not cover the entire Territory. |
| 3rd North-West Legislative Assembly 4 sessions |
1894 – 13 October 1898 |
1894 election | 29 | — | All members were elected in single-member ridings, but they did not cover the entire Territory. |
| 4th North-West Legislative Assembly 4 sessions |
1898 – 26 April 1902 |
1898 election | 31 | — | All members were elected in single-member ridings, but they did not cover the entire Territory. This was one of only two assemblies to use political parties. |
| 5th North-West Legislative Assembly 3 sessions |
1902 – 31 August 1905 |
1902 election | 35 | — | All members were elected in single-member ridings, but they did not cover the entire Territory. This was one of only two assemblies to use political parties. |
| 2nd Council of the Northwest Territories |
1905 – 1951 | — | — | up to 6 | No council was appointed until 1921, but provisions existed in law for four council seats. The Northwest Territories was instead run by the Department of Mines and Resources Canada and no legislation under territorial jurisdiction was passed or updated in this period. Between 1921 and 1951 a council existed in Ottawa with up to six seats, including the Director of Mines and Resources. No resident of the Territory was appointed to the council until 1947. |
| 1st Northwest Territories Legislative Council |
1951 – 1954 | 1951 election | 3 | 5 | All three elected members were from District of Mackenzie. |
| 2nd Northwest Territories Legislative Council |
1954 – 1957 | 1954 election | 4 | 5 | Elected members were from four ridings all in the District of Mackenzie. |
| 3rd Northwest Territories Legislative Council |
1957 – 1961 | 1957 election | 4 | 5 | Elected members were from four ridings all in the District of Mackenzie. |
| 4th Northwest Territories Legislative Council |
1961 – 1964 | 1960 election | 4 | 5 | Elected members were from four ridings all in the District of Mackenzie. |
| 5th Northwest Territories Legislative Council |
1964 – 1967 | 1964 election | 4 | 5 | Elected members were from four ridings all in the District of Mackenzie. |
| 6th Northwest Territories Legislative Council |
1967 – 1970 | 1967 election | 7 | 5 | From this point on, every region in the Territory was part of a riding and every riding elected one representative. |
| 7th Northwest Territories Legislative Council |
1970 – 1975 | 1970 election | 10 | 4 | |
| 8th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly |
1975 – 1979 | 1975 election | 15 | — | |
| 9th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly |
1979 – 1983 | 1979 election | 22 | — | |
| 10th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly |
1983 – 1987 | 1983 election | 24 | — | |
| 11th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly |
1987 – 1991 | 1987 election | 24 | — | |
| 12th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly |
1991 – 1995 | 1991 election | 24 | — | |
| 13th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly |
1995 – 1999 | 1995 election | 24 | — | |
| 14th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly 6 sessions |
1999 – 2003 | 1999 election | 19 | — | This was the first election after Nunavut split from the Territory. |
| 15th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly 6 sessions |
2003 – 2007 | 2003 election | 19 | — | |
| 16th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly 6 sessions |
2007 – 2011 | 2007 election | 19 | — | |
| 17th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly 5 sessions |
2011 – 2015 | 2011 election | 19 | — | |
| 18th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly 3 sessions |
2015 – 2019 | 2015 election | 19 | — | |
| 19th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly 2 sessions |
2019 – 2023 | 2019 election | 19 | — | |
| 20th Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly 1 session |
2023 – present | 2023 election | 19 | — |