 To understand the different electoral systems and

what works for women

 To provide gender equality advocates with research-
based information and analysis on gender sensitive
electoral system
 To ensure that women’s voices are heard in the on-
going process of constitutional change
 It’s a strategic opportunity for women to be game
changers!
 Change provisions that do not work for women!
1. Electoral System
2. Party System
 Introduce gender provisions in the Constitution
1. Gender Equality should be a separate, stand-alone subject
in Shared or Joint Powers
2. Uphold women’s rights as human rights
3. National and sub-national laws must conform with
international human rights standards including CEDAW
4. Conform with UN GA Resolution on Women’s Political
Participation and UN Security Resolution on women’s
participation in the peace process (SC 1325)
5. Mandate quotas as temporary special measures
 Proportional Representation: political groups
receive seats in proportion to their electoral
votes:
1. Requires party list voting

2. Closed party list or preferential vote

 Plurality/Majority System
1. British First Past the Post
2. French Two-Round System
 Mixed or Combined System
1. Proportional Representation
2. Closed List: Zebra or Zipper Style
3. Large, Multi-Member Districts
4. High Party Threshold
 Studies show that countries with
proportional representation have a
significant increase in women’s political
representation while only modest advances
have been made through plurality or
majority system.
 As of May, 2018, among the top 15
Parliaments in terms of women’s
representation, ten used the list
proportional representation system, three
adopted the mixed or combined system, one
used plurality, and one used the two round
system.
 Electoral System In The Top 15 Parliaments In
Women’s Representation (IPU Parline)

List PR Plurality Mixed 2-Round

Rwanda Grenada (7 Bolivia Cuba
women out
of 15 seats)
Namibia Mexico
Nicaragua Mozambique
Costa Rica
Sweden
South Africa
Finland
Senegal
Norway
Spain
 Closed party lists, zipper or zebra style
will work best for women. This means that
the political party cannot move women down
the list and move men up if it only receives a
small percentage of the votes and
consequently only a few seats.
 Among the top 15 countries in the number of
women in national Parliaments, the following
use the closed party list, zipper system:
Rwanda, Sweden, South Africa, Finland,
Namibia, Norway and Mozambique.
 District Magnitude

Large Multi-Member Small Multi-Member

Districts Districts

Poland Ireland
126 out of 460 Members of 35 out of 158 MPs are
Parliament are women women (22%)
(27.4%)
Chile
19 out of 120 MPs are
women (15.2%)
 Legal threshold refers to the minimum number
of votes that a party has to win in an election in
order to qualify for a seat in Parliament.
 The higher the threshold and the larger the
district magnitude, the more chances for women
to be included in the line-up of big political
parties and the greater probability they will win
 Sweden and Costa Rica both use high legal
threshold and both have high percentages of
women in Parliament.
1. Sweden: 152 women in the 349-seat
Parliament or 43.6%
2. Costa Rica: 19 out of 57 or 33.3% are women
 Women’s political representation can be increased through the
adoption of gender quotas which are of three types: reserved
seats, legislated or mandated quotas, and voluntary party
quotas.
 Reserved seats specify a number of seats that will be occupied
by underrepresented sectors such as women, indigenous people,
persons with disabilities, etc. There are 23 legislatures that
reserve seats for women including Afghanistan, Bangladesh
and Pakistan.
 Mandated quotas are provided for in national constitutions or
electoral laws. Among the 15 top countries in the number of
women in Parliament which have legislated or mandated quotas
are: Rwanda, Bolivia, Senegal, Mexico, Nicaragua and Spain.
 Voluntary party quotas may either be verbal commitments or
written provisions in party statutes. Among the top 16 countries
with large number of women representatives, 10 have voluntary
party quotas
QUOTAS IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES : A QUICK LOOK

Reserved Seats Legislated or Voluntary Party

(23 Legislatures) Mandated Quotas Quotas
Afghanistan Rwanda Bolivia
Bangladesh Bolivia Sweden
Pakistan Senegal Mexico
Mexico South Africa
Nicaragua Namibia
Spain Norway
Spain
Mozambique
 Political Parties

Programs/Plat
Party List
form

Gender-
Sensitive
Political
Parties
Code of Campaign
Conduct Funds
 Every political party shall be accredited by the
Federal/Regional Commission on Elections which
shall ensure that the political party has duly adopted
a GENDER-SENSITIVE PROGRAM and platform of
government before every election.
 Political parties shall ensure GENDER BALANCE in
their party lists with no one gender having more
than 60% nor less than 40% and fair, honest and
democratic process in nominating and selecting their
party candidates.
 They shall ensure the integrity and loyalty of their
members and discipline them for sexist conduct
through a GENDER SENSITIVE CODE OF CONDUCT.
 They shall publicly account for the sources and use
of their CAMPAIGN FUNDS and allocate at least 30%
for women candidates.
 Women’s Political
Participation: Barriers
Structural Socio-
Cultural
Factors and
Gender
Electoral Economic
Stereo-Typed
System Roles

Quotas Economic
Disempower-
ment

Political Access to
Education
Parties and Health
Care

Campaign Sexual and

Finance Gender-Based
Violence

Misogyny
 Elections Actual Voters Candidates Winners

National and Local (2016) Women: 50.66% Women: 19.36% Women: 17.9%
House: 28%
Senate: 25%

Men: 46.92% Men: 80.62% Men: 82.5%

House: 72%
Senate: 75%

Barangay (2013) Women: 50.63% Punong Barangay: Punong Barangay

Women: 18.74% Women: 18.35%
Men:48.51% Men: 81.26% Men: 81.65%

Barangay Kagawad: Barangay Kagawad

Women: 26.96% Women: 27.04%
Men: 73.04% Men: 72.96%
 CONCLUSIONS

Beyond Numbers Beyond Policies Beyond Activities

• Substance • Implementation • Results

• Quality • Accountability • Changing
Women’s Lives