Gender Quotas Database
Senegal
Western Africa
Single / Lower House
Assemblée nationale / National Assembly
| Total seats | 165 |
| Total women | 68 |
| Percentage of women | 41% |
| Gender Quota target | 50% |
| Election year | 2024 |
| Electoral system | Parallel |
| Quota type | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Election details | IDEA Voter Turnout - IPU Parline |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas | Electoral law |
… In any case, male-female parity applies to all lists. The lists of candidates, both full and alternate, must be alternately composed of people of both sexes. When the number of members is odd, the number applies to the even number immediately below. In the event that only one deputy is to be elected in the department, the incumbent and the substitute must be of a different sexes. … (ARTICLE 149) |
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law |
Candidate lists which do not comply with the provisions of Article L.145 (parity and gender alternation) will not be admitted. |
| Rank order/placement rules | Electoral law |
In order to provide for any vacancies that may occur: - each group of candidates had a majority vote within the jurisdiction of the department, includes a certain number of substitutes equal to the number of seats to be filled; in the event of a vacancy, it applies to the unelected candidate of the same sex placed at the top of the list in which the vacancy occurred; - each list of candidates for the proportional representation ballot with national list includes fifty (50) alternate candidates; In the event of a vacancy in a deputy seat, priority is given to the unelected candidate of the same sex placed at the top of the list in which the vacancy occurred. It then calls on alternate candidates after exhausting the list of unelected candidates, taking gender into account. … (article 154) |
| Is the provision of direct public funding to political parties related to gender equality among candidates? | No | See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
| Are there provisions for other financial advantages to encourage gender equality in political parties? | No data | See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
Quota at the Sub-National Level
| Quota type | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Gender Quota target | 50% |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas | Electoral law |
All entry lists must respect men-women parity. The lists of Candidates, both full and alternate, must be alternately composed of people of both sexes. When the number of members is odd, parity applies to the immediately lower even number. … (ARTICLE 266) |
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law |
Candidate lists which do not comply with the gender parity and alternation provisions will not be admissible (Articles L.245 (2), L.279 (5), L.308 (2) and R.81). |
| Rank order/placement rules | Electoral law |
When municipal councillors are elected by majority list voting, each list includes a number of substitutes equal to the number of seats to be filled. In the event of a vacancy on the list of candidates by majority vote, the substitute of the same sex is placed at the top of the list in which the vacancy occurred. When municipal councillors are elected by proportional representation, each list includes a number of substitutes equal to half of the seats filled. However, in the event that the number of elected councillors is odd, it is then increased by one unit to accurately determine the list of substitutes. In the event of a vacancy, priority will be given to the unelected candidate of the same sex placed at the top of the list in which the vacancy occurred. (ARTICLE L.267) |
Voluntary Political Party Quotas*
| Party | Official Name | Details, Quota provisions |
|---|---|---|
| No data available. | ||
* Only political parties represented in parliament are included. When a country has legislated quotas in place, only political parties that have voluntary quotas that exceed the percentage/number of the national quota legislation are presented in this table.
Additional information
On June 2010, Senegal adopted amendments to the election law introducing the requirement for gender parity in candidate lists for proportional and majority contests in legislative, regional, municipal and rural elections. Candidate lists, as well as alternative lists, are thus required to present an equal number of male and female candidates for national, municipal and local elections. Amendments also introduced the provision for a mandatory disqualification of those lists that do not comply with the parity principle. Electoral contestants will be given three days to revise their lists to comply with the requirement of gender parity. The 2012 legislative elections were the first to be held after the adoption of the quota provisions.
In accordance with constitutional amendments adopted in March 2016, the statutory number of members of the National Assembly increased from 150 to 165, to include 15 seats for the Senegalese diaspora. (IPU)
Sources
Legal Sources:
- Constitution of Senegal (amended through 2018, 2019) - Link
- Electoral Law - Link
- Political Party Law (amended through 1989) - Link
- Gender parity Law 11/2010 - Link
Other Sources:
- Electoral Commission - Link
- Inter-Parliamentary Union [IPU] Parline - Senegal Country Profile
- Election FAQs: Senegal 2022 Legislative Elections - Link
Additional reading
- Durantaye-Guillard, C. (2019). The political empowerment of Senegalese women: Understanding gender quotas from women’s accounts. Department of Political Science, McGill University: Montréal. [Thesis]
- Kohnert, D. & Marfaing, L. (2019). Senegal: Presidential elections 2019 - The shining example of democratic transition immersed in muddy power-politics. Institute of African Affairs: GIGA-Hamburg.
- Riley, E. (2019). Gender parity and the politics of representation in Senegal.
- Senegalese Parliament website, http://www.assemblee-nationale.sn/
- Tøraasen, M. (2017). Gender parity in Senegal – A continuing struggle. Chr. Michelsen Institute Insight (2).
- Osei, A. (2012). Party-voter linkage in Senegal. The rise and fall of Abdoulaye Wade and the Parti Démocratique Sénégalais. Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa [EISA], 12(1), 84-108.
- NDI. (2005). Money in politics: A study of party financing practices in 22 countries.
- De Diop, A. (2002) Les quotas en Africa francophone : Des débuts modestes, in International IDEA. Les Femmes au parlement : Au-Delà du Nombre (Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers), International IDEA, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Diop, A.S. (February 12, 2001). Senegalese Women Want To Be Elected Not Electors, Panafrican News Agency (PANA). [Newswire]
- Diaw, A. et al.(1999). Campagnes législative de 1998: Démocratie où-es-tu? Dakar: Conseil Sénégalais des femmes (Senegalese Women’s Council) (COSEF).
- Inter-Parliamentary Union. (1997). Democracy Still in the Making: A World Comparative Study. Geneva: Inter-Parliamentary Union.
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