Gender Quotas Database

Note to Researchers: This is a service provided by International IDEA and Stockholm University to encourage sharing of information on issues related to quotas. These papers are posted as received from the authors. Neither International IDEA nor Stockholm University are responsible for the content of these papers.

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Women's Political Participation and Electoral Quotas in Romania – Dr. Anca Turcu, Department of Political Science, Iowa State University, November 2009.

This paper describes and examines woman, political participation and electoral quotas in Romania. This is done in relation to Romania’s political and institutional system.

Chile’s ‘Presidenta’: A Change in Chile’s Democracy? An assessment of women’s political participation in Chile (1990-2006) - Acuarela Gutierrez Fermandois, Master of Science in Latin American Studies, University of Oxford, June 2006

This paper underlines the existence of structural problems surrounding the issue of under-participation of women in politics and the under-representation of women within the state in post-Pinochet Chile. It argues that despite Chile’s return to democracy there have been very few changes leading towards a more egalitarian society in gender terms. Furthermore the paper reflects the debate over gender quotas in Congress and in the political arena in general and discusses the factors that have made such legislation impossible: the lack of political will from the parties and from the state with regards to improving women’s representation in politics.

Engineering Quotas in Latin America - Jennifer M. Piscopo, University of California, San Diego 2006

The paper makes a cross-national comparison of electoral quotas' efficacy in Latin America and explores quotas' implementation in Argentina, based on fieldwork conducted in Buenos Aires over two months in 2006. The paper was prepared for the Center of Iberian and Latin American Studies at UCSD.

Le débat chilien sur la représentation politique des femmes et sur le projet d’une «loi des quotas» [French]- Sophie Stoffel

Le 13 mars 2003, le Congrès chilien enregistrait le dépôt d’une proposition visant à modifier « divers corps légaux dans le but de promouvoir le droit des femmes à participer à la vie publique nationale »1. Pour la troisième fois2, un groupe pluraliste de parlementaires tentait de relancer le débat politique sur les inégalités de genre3 en matière de représentation politique et sur la possibilité d’y remédier par une « loi des quotas »...

Explaining Gender Parity Representation in Spain: The Internal Dynamics of Parties - Monica Threlfall, Loughborough University

Paper presented at the European Consortium for Political Research Conference, Budapest, 8-10 September 2005. This paper sheds light on the reasons for the rise of women in party politics and public office using the case of Spain and the PSOE as a case study. Structural explanations and the conditioning influence of the electoral system are reviewed before focusing on institutional and party-political explanations.

Paradise Lost? The Gender Parity Plebiscite in Nunavut - Jackie Steele and Manon Tremblay

Prior to the creation of Canada’s newest Territory of Nunavut in 1999 a proposal was developed by the Nunavut Implementation Commission to promote gender equality in the new territorial legislature by creating electoral districts that would each elect one man and one woman. The resulting assembly with gender parity would have been a world’s first but this proposal received only 43% of the vote and was defeated. This article looks at events leading up to the referendum and factors that contributed to its defeat.

Women’s Representation in the Rwandan Parliament - Helle Schwartz Falkman

This study focuses on women’s representation in the Rwandan parliament. The overall purpose is to assess the force of Western theories on women’s representation in a non-Western context and to provide a deeper understanding of how the use of quota affects women’s representation.

Quota Regulations as a Means of Increasing Female Political Representation? - Dr. Andrea Fleschenberg

This paper examines the forms and ways of female political representation and participation in Asian countries, with special focus on South and Southeast Asia.

Giving voice to the voiceless: A field study from India about capacity building towards women in Panchayats as an instrument for empowerment - Caroline Szyber

This field study thesis aims to investigate how capacity building strategies given by NGOs in India can help elected female Panchayat members and how it can effect women’s political empowerment. The study focuses on the research questions; first - what barriers that make it hard for women to enter politics, second - what role can support from NGOs and capacity building activities play in breaking the barriers that makes it hard for women to enter politics?

Is Gender like Ethnicity? The Political Representation of Identity Groups - Mala Htun

Some 50 countries officially allocate access to political power by gender, ethnicity, or both. Yet in the world’s electoral democracies, the policies used for women differ systematically from those used for ethnic groups. The former receive candidate quotas in parties; the latter, reserved seats in legislatures. Why?

Quota Laws and the Election of Women in Mexico: Does it contribute to diminish the gap between choosing and being chosen? - Diego Reynoso, Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences, Visiting Scholar of Mexico, Area of Government and Policy and Natalia D'Angelo, Independent National University of Mexico, Faculty of Political and Social Sciences, Masters in Political Studies

Paper prepared to present at the 16th Congress of the Mexican Society on Electoral Studies in Torreón, Coahuila. November 18-19, 2004.

This paper analyzes, highlighting the evolution of the quota legislation in Mexico, at federal and sub-national level the impact of the legislation on the percentage of elected women as an indicator of the reduction of the existing gap between the right to choose the candidates and the right of Mexican women to be chosen as candidates to run for elections.

Dual-Member Constituencies: Resolving Deadlock on Women's Reservation - Medha Nanivadekar

Reservation of women in parliament still remains a mirage in spite of the commitment affirmed by all political parties towards women's empowerment. EPW Commentary October 25, 2003

Reforming Representation: The Diffusion of Candidate Gender Quotas Worldwide - Mona Lena Krook

Paper presented at the International Studies Association Annual International Convention, Montreal, Canada, March 17-20, 2004.

Gender quota in local politics: the Belgian case - Petra Meier

Paper delivered at the conference on Women’s Quotas in Urban Local Government: A Cross-national Comparison. New Delhi, 6 and 7 February 2003.

Gender quotas or electoral reform: why more women got elected during the 2003 Belgian elections - Petra Meier

Paper delivered at the Politicologenetmaal (Annual Meeting of Dutch and Flemish Political Scientists), Dordrecht, 22 and 23 May 2003

Increasing Women’s Representation in Iraq: What strategies would work best? - By Pippa Norris

This briefing document summarizes some of the main policy options used for securing women’s inclusion in all Iraqi governing bodies. These strategies can be adopted for election or appointment to the Governorate Election Caucus, the Transitional National Authority, the national legislature, any regional or local bodies, and other public offices, such as commissions.

Implementing Women’s Representation in Afghanistan’s Electoral Law: Options for reserved seats - By Pippa Norris

Increasing Women’s Representation in Iraq: What strategies would work best? - By Pippa Norris

Women in the Calucutta Minucipal Corporation: A Study in the Context of the Women's Reservation Bill - By Stéphanie Tawa Lama-Rewal

Elected Bodies: The Gender Quota Law for Legislative Candidates in Mexico - By Lisa Baldez

Not All Quotas Are Created Equal: Trajectories of Reform to Increase Womens Political Representation - By Mona Lena Krook

Women Governing for Modernity: International Hierarchy and Legislature Sex Quotas - By Ann Towns

Ensured Representation in the Political Sphere - Galia Golan, in Anat Maor Affirmative Action and Ensured Representation in Israel, Hakibbutz Hameuchad, Tel Aviv, 2006.

Disclaimer: The authors of the above papers maintain copyright of their respective works.