Legislated gender quotas for local governments
Global statistics
Quota type
83
Countries with gender quotas
71
Countries with candidate quotas
17
Countries with reserved seats
Based on 194 countries / *5 countries have both reserved seats and candidate quotas
Quota target range
% Women
Number of countries with legislated quotas
Electoral systems
43Proportional representation
16Majority/plurality
24Mixed
Note: In countries with legislated quotas.
Learn about quotas for parliaments
Select parameters for own analysis
Country & SDG regions
Clear
Select by country
Select by SDG region
A
Albania
Algeria
Andorra
Argentina
Armenia
B
Bangladesh
Belgium
Bolivia (Plurinational State of)
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Brazil
Burkina Faso
Burundi
C
Cabo Verde
Central African Republic
Chad
Colombia
Comoros
Congo
Costa Rica
Côte d'Ivoire
Croatia
D
Djibouti
Dominican Republic
E
Ecuador
El Salvador
F
France
G
Gabon
Georgia
Greece
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
H
Haiti
Honduras
I
India
Indonesia
Iraq
Italy
J
Jordan
K
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kyrgyzstan
L
Lesotho
Libya
M
Maldives
Mali
Mauritania
Mauritius
Mexico
Mongolia
Montenegro
Morocco
N
Namibia
Nepal
Nicaragua
Niger
North Macedonia
Norway
P
Pakistan
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Poland
Portugal
R
Republic of Korea
Republic of Moldova
Rwanda
S
Sao Tome and Principe
Senegal
Serbia
Sierra Leone
Slovenia
South Africa
Spain
Sri Lanka
State of Palestine
T
Timor-Leste
Tunisia
U
Uganda
Ukraine
United Republic of Tanzania
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
V
Vanuatu
Viet Nam
Z
Zimbabwe
Central Asia and Southern Asia
Eastern Asia and South-eastern Asia
Latin America and the Caribbean
Northern America and Europe
Oceania
Sub-Saharan Africa
Western Asia and Northern Africa
Type of legislated quota
Clear
Candidate quota
Ranking/placement
Sanction
Reserved seats
Quota target (% women)
Clear
50
40-49
30-39
20-29
Less than 20
Electoral system
Clear
Proportional representation
Majority/plurality
Mixed
Legal sources
Clear
Constitution
Electoral law
Local government law
Parity law
Party law
Financing law
Political agreement
Country information results
| Country | Type of quota | Quota target | Coverage | Placement rules for candidate quotas | Sanctions for candidate quotas | Methods of filling reserved seats | Electoral systems |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | Candidate quota | 50% | One in every two consecutive names must belong to the same gender. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation for municipal councils and indirect elections for county councils | |
| Algeria | Candidate quota | 30% | Only some types of local government | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Andorra | Candidate quota | 40% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Argentina | Candidate quota | 48% | Only some types of local government | One in every two candidates must be a woman (or one in three candidates in Tucumán province). | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation |
| Armenia | Candidate quota | 30% | Only some types of local government | For communities of over 4,000 inhabitants, one in every three candidates must be a woman. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Communities of under 4,000 inhabitants: majority/plurality; • Communities of over 4,000 inhabitants: proportional representation. |
| Belgium | Candidate quota | 50% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Bolivia (Plurinational State of) | Candidate quota, Reserved seats | 50% | Only some types of local government | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | Separate lists from and voted by indigenous peoples | • Departmental level: mixed; • Municipal level: proportional representation. |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Candidate quota | 40% | At least one woman in the first two, two in the first five, and three in the first eight candidates, etc. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Brazil | Candidate quota | 30% | N/A | Proportional representation | |||
| Burundi | Candidate quota | 30% | For three consecutive candidates, at least one must be a woman. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Cabo Verde | Candidate quota | 40% | Candidates of different sex in first two places, and no more than two candidates of same sex placed consecutively in remaining rankings. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Central African Republic | Candidate quota, | 35% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Regional councils: majority/plurality; • Municipal councils: proportional representation. | ||
| Sri Lanka | Candidate quota | 25% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation and majority/plurality | ||
| Chad | Candidate quota | 30% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Mixed | ||
| Colombia | Candidate quota | 30% | Only some types of local government | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Comoros | Candidate quota | 33% | Candidates shall alternate by sex for at least one out of each three nominees. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Congo | Candidate quota | 30% | One in three consecutive candidates shall be a woman. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Costa Rica | Candidate quota | 50% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Croatia | Candidate quota | 40% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Dominican Republic | Candidate quota | 40% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Ecuador | Candidate quota | 50% | Only some types of local government | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Single-member constituencies: majority/plurality; • Multi-member constituencies: proportional representation. |
| El Salvador | Candidate quota | 30% | Lists that do not comply are rejected; Financial sanctions. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| France | Candidate quota | 50% | Only some types of local government | Candidates must alternate by sex for regional and municipal council elections. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Regional level: proportional representation; • Departmental level: Majority/plurality; • Municipalities with 1000 or more inhabitants: proportional representation; • Municipalities with less than 1000 inhabitants: majority/plurality. |
| Djibouti | Candidate quota | 10% | Only some types of local government | N/A | • Regional and municipal councils: proportional representation; • Djibouti City Council: indirect elections. | ||
| Gabon | Candidate quota | 30% | Lists must alternate between men, women and youth per quotas. If quotas cannot be met, alternation must prevail. | Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| State of Palestine | Candidate quota | 20% | Only some types of local government | One in every five candidates must be a woman. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation |
| Greece | Candidate quota | 40% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Guinea | Candidate quota | 50% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Haiti | Candidate quota | 30% | N/A | Majority/plurality | |||
| Honduras | Candidate quota | 50% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| India | Reserved seats | 40% | Lottery-selected wards elect women for researved seats | Majority/plurality | |||
| Indonesia | Candidate quota | 33% | Only some types of local government | At least one in every three candidates must be a woman. | N/A | • Provincial, regency and city councils: proportional representation; • Village consultative bodies: majority/plurality. | |
| Iraq | Candidate quota | 25% | N/A | Proportional representation | |||
| Italy | Candidate quota | 33% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Côte d'Ivoire | Candidate quota | 30% | No more than two consecutive candidates of the same sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Kazakhstan | Candidate quota | 30% | Only some types of local government | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Regions, cities of republican significance and the capital: mixed; • Districts and cities of regional significance: majority/plurality. | |
| Jordan | Reserved seats | 25% | Unelected women with the highest votes from regular lists | Majority/plurality | |||
| Kenya | Candidate quota, Reserved seats | 33% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Selected from regular party lists | Majority/plurality | ||
| Republic of Korea | Candidate quota | 30% | Odd-numbered candidates on the party list must be a woman. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Provincial-level deliberative bodies: Mixed; • County-level deliberative bodies: Mixed. | |
| Kyrgyzstan | Candidate quota, Reserved seats | 30% | One in three consecutive candidates shall be a woman. | Women candidates with the most votes | • City councils, Council of Osh, and Council of Bishkek: proportional representation; • Vilage council elections: majority/plurality. | ||
| Lesotho | Reserved seats | 33% | Lottery-selected wards elect women for researved seats | Majority/plurality | |||
| Libya | Candidate quota | 20% | Only some types of local government | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Majority/plurality | |
| Maldives | Reserved seats | 33% | Only some types of local government | From city constituencies determined by the Election Commission; elected candidates | Majority/plurality | ||
| Mali | Candidate quota | 30% | One in every three candidates must be of a different sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Mauritania | Candidate quota | 20% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Mauritius | Candidate quota | 33% | N/A | Majority/plurality | |||
| Mexico | Candidate quota | 50% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Mixed | |
| Mongolia | Candidate quota | 20% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Majority/plurality | ||
| Republic of Moldova | Candidate quota | 40% | Four in every ten candidates must be women. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Montenegro | Candidate quota | 30% | At least one in every four candidates must be of the underrepresented sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Morocco | Reserved seats | 33% | Separate lists | • Regional councils, municipal councils of over 50,000 inhabitants: proportional representation; • Provincial and prefecture councils: indirect elections; • Municipal councils of under 50,000 inhabitants: majority/plurality. | |||
| Namibia | Candidate quota | 30% | N/A | Proportional representation | |||
| Nepal | Reserved seats | 50% | Separate sub-list for women; separate sub-list Dalit women | Majority/plurality | |||
| Vanuatu | Reserved seats | 6% | Only some types of local government | Filled by unelected women with the highest votes; Minister may also appoint nominees | • Single-member constituencies: majority/plurality; • Multi-member constituencies: other. | ||
| Nicaragua | Candidate quota | 50% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Norway | Candidate quota | 40% | N/A | Proportional representation | |||
| Pakistan | Reserved seats | 10% | Women candidates with the highest number of votes; successful candidates nominated by elected council members | • Punjab: proportional representation; • All other states: majority/plurality. | |||
| Panama | Candidate quota | 50% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Municipalities with five boroughs or more: proportional representation; • Municipalities with less than five boroughs: majority/plurality. | ||
| Paraguay | Candidate quota | 20% | One in every five candidates must be a woman. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Peru | Candidate quota | 50% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Poland | Candidate quota | 35% | Only some types of local government | For county elections, lists containing three candidates must include at least one female and one male candidate. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Deliberative bodies in regions, counties, county-cities, municipalities of over 20,000 inhabitants, the City of Warsaw, and districts of Warsaw: proportional representation. • Deliberative bodies in municipalities of up to 20,000 inhabitants: majority/plurality. |
| Portugal | Candidate quota | 40% | No more than two same-sex candidates can be listed consecutively. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Guinea-Bissau | Candidate quota | 36% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Financial sanctions. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Timor-Leste | Candidate quota, Reserved seats | 33% | Only some types of local government | For municipal elections, one in every three candidates must be a woman. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | Women candidates with the most votes; female youth applicants | • Municipalities: proportional representation; • Sucos: majority/plurality. |
| Rwanda | Reserved seats | 30% | Separate candidate list; women candidates with the highest votes | Majority/plurality | |||
| Sao Tome and Principe | Candidate quota | 40% | Candidates of different sex in first two places, and no more than two candidates of same sex placed consecutively in remaining rankings. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Senegal | Candidate quota | 50% | Candidates shall alternate by sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • 45% of departmental and municipal council members: majority/plurality. • 55% of departmental and municipal council members: proportional representation. | |
| Serbia | Candidate quota | 40% | At least two out of five consecutive candidates shall be of the underrepresented sex. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Sierra Leone | Candidate quota, Reserved seats | 30% | For every three candidates nominated, one must be female. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | Ward seats are reserved for female candidates. | Proportional representation | |
| Viet Nam | Candidate quota | 35% | N/A | Majority/plurality | |||
| Slovenia | Candidate quota | 40% | Only some types of local government | Candidates shall alternate by sex for the first half of the list. | N/A | • Municipal councils under 12 members: majority/plurality; • Municipal councils over 12 members: proportional representation. | |
| South Africa | Candidate quota | 50% | Only some types of local government | Candidates of each sex must be evenly distributed throughout the list. | N/A | • Deliberative bodies with less than ten members: proportional representation; • Metropolitan municipal councils and local municipalities: mixed; • District municipalities: mixed. | |
| Zimbabwe | Candidate quota | 23% | Only some types of local government | Candidates alternate by sex; and the list must be headed by a female candidate. | N/A | • Provincial and metropolitan councils: mixed; • Urban and rural councils: majority/plurality. | |
| Spain | Candidate quota | 40% | Only some types of local government | Lists must have an equal composition of women and men, with both sexes arranged alternatively. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | • Municipalities of under 250 inhabitants: other system; • Municipalities of over 250 inhabitants: proportional representation. |
| Uganda | Reserved seats | 33% | From amongst women candidates, people with disabilities and electoral college consisting of youth councils and youth executives | Majority/plurality | |||
| Ukraine | Candidate quota | 30% | For localities with over 10,000 voters, at least two candidates of each sex in every group of five places. | N/A | • Small localities of under 10,000 inhabitants: majority/plurality; • Localities of over 10,000 inhabitants, regions, districts and cities: proportional representation. | ||
| North Macedonia | Candidate quota | 40% | One in every three candidates, and one more for every ten places, shall belong to the underrepresented sex. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| United Republic of Tanzania | Reserved seats | 30% | Separate list of women candidates nominated by political parties | Majority/plurality | |||
| Burkina Faso | Candidate quota | 30% | Candidates shall alternate by sex for the first 2/3rds of the list. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Uruguay | Candidate quota | 33% | One in every three candidates must be a woman. | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | |
| Uzbekistan | Candidate quota | 40% | Yes; Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Majority/plurality | ||
| Niger | Candidate quota | 25% | Lists that do not comply are rejected. | N/A | Proportional representation | ||
| Bangladesh | Reserved seats | 33% | Only some types of local government | Directly elected | Majority/plurality |
Last update: 01 January, 2025
Source: UN Women review of national legal framework as of 01 October, 2025
Notes: Egypt and South Sudan also have constitutional gender quotas; however, no further information on the type of quota and/or specific implementation mechanisms are yet available. Information on gender quota for Tunisia is as of 1 January 2023; however, an amendment to the electoral law in 2023 removed provisions on local government quota. Information on gender quota for Georgia is as of 1 January 2024; however, an amendment to the electoral law in 2024 removed provisions on local government quota.
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