Legislated gender quotas for local governments, 1 January 2023
|
Country/ area name |
Type of electoral system |
Type of gender quota |
Sanctions for non-compliance |
Additional information on quotas |
|
Albania |
Proportional representation (closed list) for municipal councils and indirect elections for regional councils |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
- Rejection of candidate list |
- For each electoral zone, at least 30% of the multi-name list and one of the first three names on the multi-name list shall belong to each gender. - For elections for local government bodies, for each municipal council, one in every two consecutive names in ranking shall belong to the same gender. - The municipal council must elect its own representatives to the regional council, of whom not less than 50% shall belong to the underrepresented gender. - Appointments of vice-mayors, regional vice-heads and regional boards have to comply with the requirement of having at least 30% representation for each gender. - In case of non-compliance, the Central Election Commission imposes a fine on the respective political parties of up to 1/10 of the state fund for the financing of the election campaign, until the violation is rectified, and with a refusal of the political party’s list of the candidates for municipal council elections. |
|
Algeria |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota (partial, applies only to regions and municipalities of over 20,000 inhabitants) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- The candidate list, under penalty of being rejected, must take into account the parity of women and men and reserve, at least, half (1/2) of the candidatures for candidates under age forty (40), and at least one third (1/3) for candidates with a university-level education. - The condition of parity only applies to municipalities whose number of inhabitants is equal to or greater than twenty thousand (20,000) inhabitants. |
|
Andorra |
Proportional representation (closed list with majority bonus) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Candidates for municipal elections must have a balanced composition of women and men, so that in the list as a whole the candidates of each sex represent at least 40 %. - If during the act of verification it is observed that there are correctable errors in the composition or presentation of one or more of the candidatures, political parties are informed to rectify. |
|
Argentina |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota (partial, applies to all provinces except Catamarca) with ranking/ placement rule (partial, does not apply to Tierra del Fuego) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- In the provinces of Tierra del Fuego and Tucuman, the quota is 30%. In addition, in Tucuman, one in three consecutive candidates must be a woman. - In the provinces of Buenos Aires, Chaco, Chubut, Córdoba, Corrientes, Entre Ríos, Formosa, Jujuy, La Pampa, La Rioja, Mendoza, Misiones, Neuquén, Río Negro, Salta, San Juan, San Luis, Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santiago del Estero and in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, a 50% quota applies, where one in two candidates must be a woman. - For every province except Catamarca (where there is no gender quota), lists that do not comply are rejected. |
|
Armenia |
Mixed system: - Majority/ plurality (single non-transferable vote) for communities of under 4,000 inhabitants; |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only to communities elected by proportional representation) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Until January 1st, 2022, for the election of the community councils of over 4,000 inhabitants, the number of representatives of each sex in any quartet (1-4, 1-8, 1-12, etc.) until the end of the list, from the first number on the electoral list of each of the parties, shall not exceed 75%. Afterwards, the number of representatives of each sex in any trio until the end of the list shall not exceed 70%. - In case of inaccuracies in the submitted documents, the party has 48 hours to eliminate the inaccuracies, or else the registration of the electoral list is rejected. - For the election of the community councils of over 4,000 inhabitants, if all seats in the party go to members of the same sex, the mandate of the last candidate in the order of the list is given to the candidate with the lowest number of the unrepresented gender on the list, if any. |
|
Bangladesh |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats (partial, apply only to municipal, city, union, subdistrict and district councils) |
|
- The following seats in each local deliberative body are reserved for women:
|
|
Belgium |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For local deliberative body elections, political parties must present nominees of different sexes, in alternating order. If the list comprises an odd number of nominees, the final spot on the list is open to a candidate of either sex. - For local executive bodies, the majority coalition of the deliberative body must present nominees of different sexes, in alternating order. If the list comprises an odd number of nominees, the final spot on the list is open to a candidate of either sex. One of the two top positions on each list should be reserved for a woman nominee. - If a list does not comply with the aforementioned quotas, the list will be rejected. |
|
Bolivia (Plurinational State of) |
Mixed system: - Mixed system: majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) and proportional representation (closed list) for departmental level; - Proportional representation (closed list) for municipal level |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Party lists for deliberative body elections must alternate between female and male candidates. - For the uninominal candidate lists within departmental assembly elections, at least 50% of the total nominees across all single-member wards must be women. - Failure to comply with these quota provisions will result in the rejection of the respective party list, in which case the political organization will be notified, and the list must be amended within 72 hours of this notification. |
|
Bosnia and Herzegovina |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Every candidate list for deliberative body elections must have at least 40% representation of both genders. The minority gender candidates shall be distributed on the candidates' list in the following manner: at least one minority gender candidate amongst the first two candidates, two minority gender candidates amongst the first five candidates, and three minority gender candidates amongst the first eight candidates, et seq. - If an electoral list does not follow this quota, the Central Election Commission can reject the respective list if not revised within five days of notification. |
|
Brazil |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota |
No |
- For municipal council elections, each candidate list must consist of 30-70% of each gender. |
|
Burkina Faso |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
No, but additional funding for political parties achieving or exceeding the quota |
- For municipal council elections, any list of candidatures submitted by a political party must include at least 30% of candidates of each sex. - Each list of candidates presented for legislative or municipal elections must alternate between women and men or men and women for the first 2/3 of the list. The alternate positioning applies to both the list of incumbents and that of substitutes. - Any political party, coalition of political parties, or coalition of independent candidates that complies with the provisions of this law shall receive additional public funding for the electoral campaign. The additional public funding represents 20% of the total amount allocated by the State for the financing of the electoral campaign. |
|
Burundi |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule. |
No, but in case of imbalance in the results, the EMB corrects it. |
- The municipal council must be composed of at least 30% women. - For three consecutive candidates, at least one must be a woman. - The municipal council board must have at least 30% women. In addition, at least 1/3 of the municipal administrators must be women nationwide. - In the event that the composition of a municipal council does not reflect the gender diversity of the electorate, the Independent National Electoral Commission corrects the imbalances according to the method of the strongest remainder. The Independent National Electoral Commission may order the co-optation to the council of persons from an under-represented gender, provided that the persons thus co-opted do not constitute more than one fifth of the members of the council. - In the event of a vacancy, the municipal councilor is replaced in priority by a candidate of the same ethnicity and gender who is in an adequate position on the list. |
|
Cabo Verde |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For the municipal assembly and the municipal chamber elections, there must be a minimum representation of 40% of each sex in the candidacy lists. The first two places on the plurinominal candidacy lists must be occupied by candidates of different sex, and no more than two candidates of the same sex may be placed consecutively in the ranking of the remaining places on the lists. - If the list does not comply with the provisions of the law, the list may be rejected. - The State's electoral subsidy shall be awarded to political parties or coalitions of political parties and candidacies presented by groups of citizens whose lists are elected at municipal level with 25% female candidates. |
|
Central African Republic |
Mixed system: - Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) for regional councils; |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- As a transitional measure valid until 2026, for electoral mandates and elective offices, a minimum quota of 35% of women is required. - After the transitional period, for electoral mandates and elective offices, candidatures must be presented in equal numbers of male and female candidates. When the number of candidates of both sexes is odd, the parity applies to the even lower number. - In case of non-compliance, the list or election is declared non-valid by the National Electoral Authority. The candidate can then appeal to the Constitutional Court within three days. The Court must render its judgement within fifteen days. |
|
Chad |
Mixed system: majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) and proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- At the provincial and municipal level, lists must comply with the quota of at least 30% women under penalty of rejection. |
|
Colombia |
Proportional representation (closed list by default, open list by party choice) |
Candidate quota (partial, applies to deliberative bodies of more than five seats) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Candidate lists for deliberative bodies of more than five seats must be composed of at least 30% of each gender. - Candidate lists that do not comply with the gender quota requirement are rejected. |
|
Comoros |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- A candidate list must be composed of nominees alternating by two candidates of one sex and one candidate of the other to be receivable by the Island Electoral Commission. - Candidates on the rejected list have 24 hours to appeal to the Constitution Court, which will give its decision within five days. If no decision is given duringthat time, the list is not rejected. |
|
Congo |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota (with partial ranking/ placement rule, applies only to municipalities) |
No |
- Women must represent at least 30% of nominees on each submitted party list. For municipalities, out of every three consecutive nominees on a list, one must be a woman. |
|
Costa Rica |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- All candidate lists and elected bodies are composed of 50% women and 50% men; the difference between the number of men and women cannot be greater than one. - All candidate lists alternate so that two candidates of the same sex are not listed consecutively. - The General Directorate of the Electoral Registry will reject the candidate lists that violate the above stipulations. |
|
Côte d'Ivoire |
Proportional representation (closed list with majority bonus) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- A minimum of 30% of women out of the total number of candidates presented during the electoral consultation is required. - Any list of candidates must respect the alternation of the sexes so that if two candidates of the same sex are entered, the third is of the other sex. - Any list whose composition of the file does not comply with the aforementioned provisions is rejected by the Commission responsible for elections. The political party or group has three days to appeal to the Council of State, which in turn has three days to issue a decision. If the Council of State does not decide within the time limit, the application must be registered. - Any political party or political grouping whose list reaches at least 50% of women candidates benefits from additional public funding. |
|
Croatia |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Lists are obliged to respect the principle of gender equality, with gender balance established at 40%. - The competent election commission shall accept the valid candidate lists and the untimely and invalid candidate lists shall be rejected by a decision. |
|
Djibouti |
Proportional representation (closed list with majority bonus) for regional and municipal councils; indirect elections for Djibouti City Council |
Candidate quota (partial, applies only to regional and municipal councils) |
No |
- For regional and municipal council elections, each list must contain a proportion of one or the other sex equivalent to at least 10% of the seats to be filled. |
|
Dominican Republic |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- The Central Electoral Board will not admit a list of candidacies for popularly elected offices containing less than 40% and more than 60% of men or women - The running mates of mayors and directors should be of the opposite gender. |
|
Ecuador |
Mixed system: - Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) in single-member constituencies; |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only to multi-member constituencies) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- In candidate lists for multi-member constituencies, there must be parity and alternation between women and men. - Lists that do not strictly maintain parity and alternation between women and men will be denied registry. |
|
El Salvador |
Proportional representation (closed list with majority bonus) |
Candidate quota |
- Lists that do not comply can be fined; - Political parties must correct the infraction |
- Political parties must each submit a candidate list for the municipal council election which contains at least 30% women nominees. - If a political party fails to meet the respective quota, the party will be sanctioned with fines (fifteen to fifty-five monthly minimum wages in force for the commerce sector and services) by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal and must rectify the quota infraction within 15 days. |
|
France |
Mixed system: - Proportional representation (closed list with majority bonus) for regional level and municipalities with over 1,000 inhabitants; |
Candidate quota (partial, applies only to regions, departments and municipalities of over 1,000 inhabitants) with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only to regions and large municipalities) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For regional council elections, each list must be composed of candidates alternating by sex. - For regional permanent commission elections, each regional councilor or group of councilors submits a list of candidates; each list must be composed of candidates alternating by sex. - For elections to the departmental assembly (general council), voters elect two members of different sexes per canton; candidates present themselves in pairs on a tandem ballot. - For municipal council elections in municipalities with over 1,000 inhabitants, each list must be composed of candidates alternating by sex. - In case of non-compliance, the list is rejected and given 72 hours to rectify. |
|
Gabon |
Proportional representation (closed list) with majority bonus |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Lists must contain 30% women and must alternate between men, women and youth throughout, in accordance with the quota target. - Political parties that do not comply are notified within five days of the deposit of the list by the National Autonomous Electoral Commission. They are given 48 hours to rectify, or the list will be rejected. |
|
Gambia (Republic of the) |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats for appointed representatives of special groups |
|
- If more than 2/3 of elected local deliberative body members are men, then a women’s representative is proposed from amongst local social and commercial interest groups. The women’s representative is nominated by the council chairperson, pending approval of the Secretary of State. |
|
Georgia |
Mixed system: majority/ plurality (single non-transferable vote) and proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only to candidates elected by proportional representation system) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Until 2028, one in every two candidates on the submitted list is of the opposite sex. - Until 2028, lists that do not respect gender balance will be given 3 days to rectify, or else will be rejected. - Maintaining gender balance is a precondition for additional funding provided by the Organic Law of Georgia on Citizens’ Political Associations. |
|
Greece |
Proportional representation (open list with majority bonus) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Candidate lists must be composed of at least 40% candidates of each gender. - Lists that do not comply with the gender quota are inadmissible. |
|
Guinea |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
Candidate lists must be composed alternatively of candidates of both sexes. - In the event of non-compliance with any of these provisions, it shall automatically pronounce the inadmissibility of the lists of candidates concerned. The rejection decision is reasoned and notified to the interested parties, in accordance with the law. - 5% of the state funding for political parties will be proportionally distributed to parties that have elected women in the municipal deliberative bodies. |
|
Guinea-Bissau |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota |
- Rejection of candidate list; - Fine: reduction of public subsidies and loss of tax exemption benefits - Public media exposure of non-compliance |
- Lists for elected positions for municipalities must have a minimum of 36% women. - Lists submitted by parties may not contain only candidates of the same kind in order to respect the above-mentioned parity. - If a list does not comply with this law, the representative shall be notified, in accordance with the applicable electoral law, to correct it. - Failure to correct the lists within the timeframe provided for in the respective electoral law cumulatively determines: the public posting of the lists indicating their non-compliance with the present law; its disclosure in the media; the reduction of the amount of public subsidies for election campaigns; the loss of all tax exemptions when granted. |
|
Haiti |
Majority/ plurality (party block vote) |
Candidate quota |
No, but reduced registration fee for parties with targeted proportion of women |
- The list of candidates submitted to the Provisional Electoral Council by associations, for each elective office, must contain at least 30% women. - For the municipal section assembly elections, if there are:
- For the municipal council, municipal assembly, and board of directors of the municipal section elections, each cartel has to present at least one woman candidate to be elected. - The associations that register at least 30% of women benefit from a 40% discount on registration fees. |
|
Honduras |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
- Rejection of candidate list; |
- For municipal corporations, in relation to the position of Mayor and councilors, lists must be composed of fifty percent (50%) women and fifty percent (50%) men. - The lists of candidates presented to the National Electoral Council (CNE) must use the mechanism of alternation by gender (woman-man or man-woman) in such a way that two (2) people of the same sex cannot be consecutively on the list. - Failure to apply the principle of parity and the alternation mechanism in the choice of authorities will result in the non-recognition of party authorities by the Supreme Electoral Court. - Failure to comply with the Principle of Parity and the Alternation Mechanism in observance of these regulations, will generate as a sanction by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, the non-registration of candidate lists.
|
|
India |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats |
|
- At least 1/3 of the total council seats must be reserved for women; seats may be allotted by rotation to different council constituencies. The gender quota also applies to the reserved seats for castes and tribes. - At least 1/3 of the seats reserved for members of scheduled castes and tribes must be reserved for women. - At least 1/3 of the total number of chairperson’s office members amongst local councils must be reserved for women; seats may be allotted by rotation. - Although the Federal Constitution guarantees 1/3 of reserved seats, some states reserve 1/2 of seats for women. This provision applies to both rural and urban local government in some states, while in others it applies only to rural local government. |
|
Indonesia |
Mixed system: - Proportional representation (open list) for provincial, regency and city level; - Majority/ plurality for village level |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only to candidates elected by proportional representation) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For local deliberative bodies in the provinces, regencies, and cities, each party list consists of at least 30% of women nominees. - One out of every three nominees on the list is a woman. - The respective election commission will verify each list for the fulfillment of this quota, otherwise, a list may be returned and/or rejected. |
|
Iraq |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota |
No, but a corrective mechanism modifying the order of seat attribution to ensure targeted representation of women |
- In governorate and district council elections, the seats are distributed among the candidates on the list according to the number of votes they obtained. - However, after three men candidates are elected, the fourth seat will go to a woman, even if, by the number of votes obtained, it should go to a man. Overall, women’s representation should reach 25%. |
|
Italy |
Proportional representation (open list with majority bonus) |
Candidate quota (with partial ranking/ placement, applies onlyfor municipalities of over 15,000 inhabitants) |
Rejection of candidate list (following correction of sex underrepresentation by the EMB) |
- Municipalities with a population of over 5,000 inhabitants: the representation of both sexes is ensured in the lists of candidates; neither sex can be represented by more than two thirds of the candidates. Each elector can express one or two preference votes. If the voter expresses two preferences, they must concern candidates of different sexes from the same list. In case of non-compliance, the second preference will not be taken into account. - In 2022, the Constitutional Court declared unconstitutional the failure to provide for the exclusion of electoral lists that do not present candidates of both sexes, in place for Municipalities of under 5,000 inhabitants. This has not yet been translated into law. - In the municipal committees of municipalities with a population of over 3,000 inhabitants, each sex must be represented by at least 40% of members. - Provinces and metropolitan cities: neither of the sexes can represent more than 60% of the candidates on a given coalition list. In case of non-compliance, the electoral office deletes the names of candidates belonging to the most represented sex, proceeding from the last on the list, in order to ensure compliance with the provision referred to in the first sentence. The list which, following the cancellation of the excess candidates, contains a number of candidates lower than the minimum required is inadmissible. |
|
Jordan |
Majority/ plurality (block vote) |
Reserved seats |
|
- 25% of elected seats are reserved for women, to be filled by the candidates with the highest number of votes who did not win a seat in the governorate. If there are no women amongst the candidates, then women are appointed by the central government from amongst the local electorate. |
|
Kazakhstan |
Mixed system: - Mixed system (closed list proportional representation and first-past-the-post) for regions, cities of republican significance and the capital; - Majority/plurality (first-past-the-post) for districts and cities of regional significance |
Candidate quota (partial, applies only to candidates elected by proportional representation) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- In each list, the total number of women and young people should be at least thirty percent of the total number of candidates. - If the political party violated the rules of submission of the party list, the electoral commission refuses to register the party list or revokes the decision on registration. |
|
Kenya |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats through special lists for women and marginalized groups (that alternate between women and men) |
|
- Not more than 2/3 of the members of any county assembly or county executive committee can be of the same gender. - The party lists for reserved seats for the underrepresented gender and marginalized groups shall contain alternates between men and women candidates in the priority in which they are listed. - For the purpose of designating representatives of the underrepresented gender, the Commission shall draw from the list such a number of special seat members in the order given by the party, necessary to ensure that no more than two-thirds of the membership of the assembly is of the same gender. - For the purpose of designating representatives of marginalized groups, the Commission shall draw four special seat members in the order given by the party. - Reserved seat members are nominated by political parties in proportion to the number of seats received in the local deliberative body election by each political party. The number of reserved seats is determined after the declaration of elected members from each ward. - The allocation of seats by the Commission shall be proportional to the number of seats won by the party in the traditional ward-based election. |
|
Kyrgyzstan |
Mixed system: - Proportional representation (closed list) for city councils, the council of Osh, and the council of Bishkek; |
- Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule for city councils, council of Osh and Council of Bishkek; |
No |
- When forming lists of candidates for the city council, Council of Osh, and Council of Bishkek elections, political parties cannot have more than 70% of candidates of the same gender. - The difference in priority of women and men within candidate lists should not exceed two positions. - For carrying out elections of deputies of village councils not less than 30% of mandates of deputies are reserved for women. |
|
Lesotho |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats |
|
- In the municipal, urban, and community councils, 1/3 of the total seats are reserved for women. 1/3 of the total electoral divisions within each council area are reserved for women by rotation, but such rotation should not exceed two terms of office. |
|
Liberia |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats for appointed representatives of special groups |
|
- In the county council, there is one reserved seat for a representative to be appointed from the county women’s organization. - Additionally, one of the two appointed youth representatives and one of the two appointed civil society association representatives must be women. |
|
Libya |
Majority/ plurality (block vote) |
Reserved seats |
|
- Each municipal council should include at least one woman member. Seats designated for women are filled by the candidates for this category who win the highest number of votes, in addition to the seats that they may obtain from obtaining the highest number of votes in the general seat contest. |
|
Maldives |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post or block vote) |
Reserved seats |
|
- 33% of reserved seats on City Councils, Island Councils, and Atoll Councils are reserved for women. - At the level of the island councils, councils consisting of 5 members shall consist of 2 women; councils consisting of 7 councilors shall consist of 3 women. |
|
Mali |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Candidate lists will be rejected if the list is composed of more than 70% of either sex. - Parties are given 48 hours to rectify the list. In case of non-compliance, the list is inadmissible. |
|
Mauritania |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota |
- Rejection of candidate list; - Financial incentives for political parties meeting quota target |
- For regional council elections, there must be at least two women candidates for councils with 11 members, three women candidates for councils with 15 members, four women candidates for councils with 21 members, and five women candidates for councils with more than 21 members. - For municipal council elections, women are entitled to at least 20% of the municipal council seats. Therefore, under the penalty of inadmissibility, candidate lists for municipal elections must include at least two women candidates for councils with 9-11 members, three women candidates for councils with 15-17 members, and four women candidates for councils with 19 or more members. - Where the elected members from a political party meet the gender quota target, the political party can obtain a financial incentive under the conditions defined by a joint order of the Ministers of the Interior and Finance. |
|
Mauritius |
Majority/ plurality (block vote) |
Candidate quota |
No |
- For city, town, and village council elections, each group presenting more than two candidates for election must ensure that not more than two-thirds of the group’s candidates are of the same sex. |
|
Mexico |
Mixed system: proportional representation (closed list) and majority/ plurality (single non-transferable vote) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Candidate lists must respect gender parity and be composed of candidates listed alternating by sex. - If the lists do not comply with parity, the Local Public Bodies will have the power to reject the registration of candidates that do not respect the principle. Lists are given a non-extendable period of time to replace these candidates or the list is rejected. |
|
Mongolia |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post or block vote) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- At least 20% of the candidates nominated by a party or coalition shall be candidates of one sex. - Registration of a candidate shall be refused If the requirements for candidates specified in this law have not been met. In case of refusal to register a candidate, he/she may submit his/her request for re-registration together with the required documents to the respective level election committee at least 25 days prior to the polling day. |
|
Montenegro |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- There shall be at least 30% of candidates on the candidate list from the underrepresented sex. - Among every four candidates in the candidate list order (the first four places, the second four places, and so on until the end of the list) there shall be at least one candidate who is a member of the underrepresented sex. - The list will be rejected by the Election Commission if it does not meet the above quota. |
|
Morocco |
Mixed systems: - Proportional representation (closed list) for regional councils and municipal councils of over 50,000 inhabitants; - Mixed system: indirect elections through proportional representation (closed list) or majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) for provincial and prefectural councils |
Reserved seats |
|
- For regional council elections, at least 1/3 of seats in each electoral division are reserved for women; women can also contest for the other 2/3 of seats. - For prefectural or provincial council elections, 1/3 of seats are reserved for women on a separate list; women can also contest for the other 2/3 of seats. - For municipal councils elected through the proportional electoral system, 1/3 of seats are reserved for women. In municipalities with electoral subdivisions, 1/3 of seats must be reserved in each subdivision. This number may not be under 3 seats for women per subdivision. - For municipal elections using the majority electoral system, five seats are reserved for women. |
|
Namibia |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota |
No |
- Each candidate list must contain at least three women for elections for village councils or municipal/town councils with ten or fewer members; and at least five women for municipal/town councils with 11 or more members. |
|
Nepal |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats |
|
- In the local deliberative body, two of the four members elected from each ward must be women, one of which must be a Dalit woman. - In the local executive body, five seats (in an urban municipal executive body) or four seats (in a rural municipal executive body) are reserved for women members elected by and from the deliberative body. - Parties that submit candidates for both mayor and deputy mayor (or rural municipal executive head and deputy head) must ensure that one of the two candidates is a woman. |
|
Nicaragua |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
No, but corrective mechanism modifying the order of seat attribution to ensure targeted representation of women |
- The political parties or alliances of parties that participate in the Municipal Elections must present in their lists of candidates 50% of men and 50% of women ordered equally and presented alternately. - If that is not the case, the Supreme Electoral Council will require each of the political parties or alliance of political parties, to invert the man-woman, woman-man order in the necessary elected formulas to ensure the relationship of gender equality mandated by law. - If any political party or alliance of political parties does not make or refuses to make the indicated adjustments to ensure the woman-man relationship required by law in the final lists of the declaration of elected candidates, then it will be the obligation of the Supreme Electoral Council to proceed ex officio. - The political parties and electoral alliances must present in their list of candidates for mayor, vice mayor and councilors 50% of men and 50% of women, presented alternately. - The nomination for the posts of mayor and vice mayor must be based on the principle of the equal and fair treatment of the sexes in the exercise of local power, as one of them must be a woman and the other a man, respecting the proportionality between the two sexes. - The Supreme Electoral Council shall ensure that the total list of women and men elected at the national level as Mayors, Deputy Mayors and Deputy Mayors is made up of 50% of women and 50% of men. - If it is not achieved as a direct result of the election, the Supreme Electoral Council will ask the political parties or alliance of political parties that have obtained the election of more than one formula at the national level, to make the necessary adjustments in the list of their elected candidates and elected by inverting the woman-man composition of the formulas that are necessary until achieving a balance of 50% of women and 50% of men among the elected. |
|
Niger |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota (on elected seats obtained by parties) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Submitted party lists must include candidates of both sexes. - The total elected members returned by each party list should not be less than 25% of each sex. - Any political party that obtains at least three seats must ensure the implementation of the 25% quota requirement. - If a list fails to meet this quota, the case can be brought before the Constitutional Court. |
|
North Macedonia |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- In candidate nomination lists for the local deliberative body elections, at least 40% of the candidates must be women, namely: in every third place at least one place is for a woman and, additionally, at least one place in every ten places. - The Election Commission of the City of Skopje or the respective municipal election commission will reject any list that does not fulfill this quota. |
|
Norway |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota |
No, but a corrective mechanism modifying the order of seat attribution to ensure targeted representation of women. |
- If four or more members are to be elected, each gender must be represented by at least 40% of the proposed candidates on the individual list. If two or three members are to be elected, both sexes must be represented. - Candidates from the under-represented sex shall move up the list order until the quota requirement is met. |
|
Pakistan |
Mixed system: - Proportional representation (closed list) in Punjab state; - Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post, block vote or single non-transferable vote) in other states |
Reserved seats |
|
- Number and proportion of reserved seats vary. For some local deliberative bodies, there are no reserved seats. Quotas in place vary from 10% to 33%. |
|
Panama |
Mixed system: - Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) in municipalities divided in boroughs; -Proportional representation (open list) in municipalities with a single constituency |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Political parties must nominate 50% of women and 50% of men of the total of the main positions of deputies, mayors, representatives of townships and councilors. Every nomination of male and female candidates will be composed of a principal of one gender, accompanied by an alternate of the other gender. - If candidacies do not comply with the gender quota, local electoral commissions will point out the omissions to be corrected within a non-extendable period of five business days. |
|
Papua New Guinea |
Majority/ plurality (alternative vote) |
Reserved seats for appointed representatives of special groups |
|
- In the provincial council, there is one appointed women’s representative nominated by the provincial council of women in the province, or, if there is not one, the joint provincial planning and budget priorities committee for the province nominates three women. One nominee is then appointed by the provincial executive council. - In the local council, the respective provincial council of women nominates one women's representative (in urban areas) or two women's representatives (in rural areas) to be appointed. |
|
Paraguay |
Proportional representation (open list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- The organic charter or statute of the political party must establish the appropriate mechanisms for the promotion of women to elective positions in a percentage of no less than 20%. - In order to guarantee the participation of women in the collegiate bodies to be elected, their internal nomination as candidates must be given at the rate of one woman candidate for every five places on the lists so that this establishment can appear anywhere but at a ratio of one candidate for every five positions to be elected. - Political parties, movements, or alliances that do not comply with these provisions in their internal elections will be sanctioned by not registering their lists in the respective electoral courts. |
|
Peru |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
No |
- Each candidate list must be composed of 50% men and 50% women alternating throughout the list. |
|
Philippines |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats for appointed representatives of special groups |
|
- One out of the three sectoral representatives in a local deliberative body must be a woman. |
|
Poland |
Mixed system: - Proportional representation (closed list) for regions, counties, county-cities, municipalities of over 20,000 inhabitants, the City of Warsaw, and districts of Warsaw; |
Candidate quota (partial, applies only to councils elected through proportional representation) with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only in counties) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For regional, county, city-county, and city-district deliberative body elections, the candidate list must be composed of at least 35% of each gender. - For county council elections, in case of submitting a list containing three candidates, there must be at least one female candidate and one male candidate. - If a list does not meet this quota requirement, the list must be fixed within three days of notification, or else the list will be refused. |
|
Portugal |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Candidate lists for local deliberative body and local executive body elections must be composed in such a way as to ensure parity of women and men. Parity means the representation of at least 40% of each sex. - No more than two same-sex candidates can be listed consecutively. - Failure to meet this quota, or to correct the list of candidates within the given time period, will result in the rejection of the entire list. |
|
Republic of Korea |
Mixed system: - Mixed system: majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) and proportional representation (closed list) for provincial-level deliberative bodies; - Mixed system: majority/ plurality (single non-transferable vote) and proportional representation (closed list) for county-level deliberative bodies |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For candidates elected using the majority electoral system, at least 30% of the nominees on each party list must be women. Each party must nominate at least one woman nominee per ward. - For candidates elected using the proportional electoral system, at least 50% of the nominees must be women; odd-numbered nominees on the party list must be women. - The constituency election commission will reject an application for candidate registration if the quota provisions are violated. |
|
Republic of Moldova |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Candidate lists should be drafted respecting the minimum representation rate of 40% for each sex. - Four in every ten candidates must be women. - Lists that do not comply with the quota are not registered by the electoral body. |
|
Rwanda |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post): - Sector council members are directly elected by voters through a majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) system |
Reserved seats |
|
- In the City Council of Kigali, one woman and one man member are elected by and from the district council within the City of Kigali. - In the district council, one woman and one man are elected from each sector council within the district; at least 30% of district council members are women. In total, at least 5 of 17 councilors must be women. - In each district council and the City Council of Kigali, there is also a woman coordinator nominated from the National Women’s Council. - Each bureau of the council must be composed of at least 30% women members. Each executive committee must be composed of at least 30% women members. |
|
Sao Tome and Principe |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- When drawing lists for elections, political parties must take into account the principle of gender equality and parity which means a minimum representation of 40% of each sex. - The first two places on the lists must be occupied by candidates of different genders, and no more than two candidates of the same sex can be placed consecutively in the list. - In case of non-compliance with the 40% quota, the party is notified to proceed with a correction. Failure to correct lists within 48 hours leads to their rejection. |
|
Senegal |
Mixed system: majority/ plurality (party block vote) and proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Gender parity applies to all candidate lists. Candidate lists must be alternately composed of persons of both sexes. When the number of total candidates is odd, parity applies to the even number immediately below. |
|
Serbia |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For local deliberative body elections, there must be 40% of the underrepresented gender on the electoral list. Two of each five consecutive candidates must be of the under-represented gender. - The Electoral Commission makes a decision on the validity of electoral lists no later than 15 days before voting day. |
|
Sierra Leone |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats |
|
- For every 3 candidates nominated, one of them shall be female. Ward seats are reserved in each locality for the exclusive contesting of female candidates |
|
Slovenia |
Mixed system: - Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post or block vote) for municipal councils under 12 members; |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only in multi-member constituencies) |
No |
- In multi-member constituencies, each gender must constitute at least 40% of the places on the candidate list. - Candidates in the first half must alternate by gender. Lists with three total candidates must have at least one of each gender. |
|
South Africa |
Mixed system: - Proportional representation (closed list) for deliberative bodies with less than 7 members; |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only for proportional systems) |
No |
- In regard to councilors elected using the proportional electoral system, every party must seek to ensure that 50% of the candidates on each list are women and that the candidates of each sex are evenly distributed throughout the list. |
|
Spain |
Mixed system: - Proportional representation (closed list) for municipalities of over 250 inhabitants; |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only to municipal council of over 3,000 inhabitants) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For municipal council elections in municipalities of over 3,000 inhabitants, the lists of candidates must have a balanced proportion of women and men, so that candidates of either sex make up at least 40% of the total membership. - Where the number of seats is less than five, the ratio between women and men should be as close as possible to an equal balance. - The same 40% ratio shall be kept in each grouping of five consecutive seats of the whole list. Where the last grouping of consecutive seats is less than five, the ratio of women to men should be as near as possible to an equal balance, provided that the mandatory quota for the whole list is preserved. These quotas also apply to the alternates’ lists. - Lists that do not comply will be made aware of irregularities and asked to redress them in 48 hours. Lists that do not fulfill the requirements of the Law will not be proclaimed. |
|
Sri Lanka |
Mixed system: proportional representation (closed list) and majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list and corrective measures to ensure a targeted representation of women in elected positions |
- Within the party list for the majority-based vote, at least 10% of total nominees must be women. - Within the party list for the proportional system, at least 50% of total nominees must be women. - The Election Commission of Sri Lanka can reject any lists that do not comply with these quotas. - The Election Commissioner oversees that 25% of the total members to be elected and returned from each ward must be women. If a party receives less than 20% of the total number of votes in a local authority and obtains fewer than three seats, the quota does not apply.
|
|
State of Palestine |
Proportional representation (closed list) |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- In the local bodies not exceeding 13 seats, the women's representation should not be less than two seats: one woman shall be among the first five names; one woman shall be among the next five names. - In the local bodies exceeding 13 seats, a seat shall be allocated for women among the five names that follow the first 10 candidates. - Local bodies in which the number of voters is less than 1000 are excluded from the ranking/placement rules mentioned above. The option for selecting places allocated for women among the candidates shall be left to the political parties. - The Central Elections Commission shall reject the registration request of an electoral list if the application did not meet the conditions stipulated in this law. |
|
Timor-Leste |
Mixed systems: - Proportional representation (closed list) for municipalities; - Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) for village councils |
- Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule for municipalities; - Reserved seats for villages |
Rejection of candidate list (for municipalities) |
- The lists of candidates for municipal councils must include at least one woman for each set of three candidates under penalty of rejection. - In the village council, one of the two delegates elected from each sub-village of the village must be a woman. - One of the two youth representatives must be a woman. Youth representatives are elected by the village council at its first meeting. - For the village chief election, there must be at least two candidacies, one of which is a woman. - For the sub-village chief election, there must be at least two candidacies, one of which is a woman. - The polling station rejects candidacies that do not comply with this quota. |
|
Tunisia |
Proportional representation (closed list) for regions and municipalities, and indirect elections for districts |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule (partial, applies only to regions and municipalities) |
Rejection of candidate list |
- For municipal and regional council elections, the candidate lists must be presented on the principle of parity between men and women and the alternate listing of each sex. - Nominations for the heads of party lists are also presented based on the principle of parity between men and women. - Lists that do not comply with these rules are inadmissible. |
|
Uganda |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
Reserved seats |
|
- 1/3 of the membership of each local government council shall be reserved for women. Furthermore, in each local government deliberative body, there shall be a woman councillor directly elected to represent each ward. - Additionally, from the reserved seats for youth, disabled persons, older persons and workers, one of the two councilors (per category) must be female. These councillors are indirectly elected. - Additionally, in each local government executive body, at least one of the secretaries must be female. |
|
Ukraine |
Mixed system: - Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post or block vote) for small localities of under 10,000 inhabitants; |
Candidate quota (with partial ranking/ placement rule applied only in localities of over 10,000 inhabitants, regions, districts and cities) |
No |
- For localities of under 10,000 voters, representation of persons of the same sex in the electoral lists of candidates for deputies of local councils in multi-member constituencies must be at least 30% of the total number of candidates on the electoral list. - For localities of over 10,000 voters; regions; cities and districts, party lists should ensure a presence in every five consecutive candidates (places from the first to the fifth, from the sixth to the tenth, and so on) of at least two candidates of each sex.
|
|
United Republic of Tanzania |
Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) |
- Reserved seats; - Reserved seats for appointed representatives of special groups for Tanzania Zanzibar |
|
- In mainland Tanzania, every political party which contests the local deliberative body election may propose the names of eligible women candidates for nomination to the reserved seats for women to the electoral authority. The list names of women proposed to the electoral authority are in order of preference; the electoral authority declares such a number of women candidates from the respective political parties to be elected. In the district council, the number of reserved seats for women is not less than 1/3 of the total number of elected members, members of the National Assembly, and appointed members in the council. In city, municipal, and town councils, the number of reserved seats for women is not less than 1/3 of the total number of elected members and members of the National Assembly in the council. - In Tanzania Zanzibar, the municipal, town, and district councils consist of members appointed by the minister responsible for local government, of which 40% must be women. |
|
Uruguay |
Proportional representation (closed list, with majority bonus for departments only); |
Candidate quota with ranking/ placement rule |
Rejection of candidate list |
- Candidates of both sexes must be represented within every three places on the respective candidate list, either throughout the entire list or within the first 15 places. Where only two seats are contested, one of the two candidates must be a woman. - Lists that fail to comply with the gender quota requirements are rejected by the Electoral Court. |
|
Uzbekistan |
Majority/ plurality (two-round system) |
Candidate quota |
Rejection of candidate list |
- At least 30% of candidates nominated by each political party must be women. - The region, sub-region, or city election commission notifies the head of the respective political party of the discrepancies between the requirements of the Election Code and the documents submitted for registration. - The political party has the right to correct the discrepancies in the registration documents within two days and submit them to the respective election commission. |
|
Vanuatu |
Mixed system: - Majority/ plurality (single non-transferable vote and first-past-the-post) in Provinces; |
- Reserved seats |
|
- In each ward in a municipality, one seat is reserved for a female councilor. The woman candidate who was not declared by the Electoral Commission as the winning candidate for a general seat and who has achieved the highest number of votes among other female candidates in that ward is to be declared by the Electoral Commission as the winning candidate for the reserved seat. - The Minister may appoint additional women to each provincial council. |
|
Viet Nam |
Majority/ plurality (block vote) |
Candidate quota |
No |
- At least 35% of the total people’s council candidates must be women. |
|
Zimbabwe |
Mixed system: - Proportional representation (closed list) for provincial and metropolitan councils; - Majority/ plurality (first-past-the-post) for urban and rural councils |
Reserved seats (partial, applies only to provincial and metropolitan councils) |
No |
- Provincial and metropolitan councils are composed of a chairperson; the mayors and chairpersons of all urban and rural local authorities in the province/metropolitan area concerned; and ten women elected by a system of indirect proportional representation. - Women are elected on a separate list, based on the votes cast for candidates representing political parties in the province/metropolitan area concerned in general elections. - Women with disabilities are included in the lists. - In addition, an Act of Parliament may provide for the election, by a system of proportional representation, of at least thirty per centum of the total members of the local council elected on a ward basis as women. However, no such act has been passed. |
Note: Egypt and South Sudan may also have legislated gender quotas, however, no further information on the type of quota and/or specific legislative provisions yet. Information on gender quota for Tunisia is as of 1 January 2023, however, the electoral law amendment of 2023 removes provisions on local government quota.
Source: UN Women review of national legal frameworks as of 1 January 2023.