Quotas

Quotas, a formal mechanism that enhances women’s participation and representation, are being increasingly implemented. Gender quotas ensure that women constitute a specific number or percentage of the members of a body, be it a candidate list, a parliamentary assembly, a committee or the government. Another benefit is that quotas help reduce the gap between the numbers of women and men represented in the political arena.

There are different types of quotas, with the main distinction being between legislative and constitutional quotas on the one hand and voluntary political party quotas on the other. Legislative and constitutional quotas are based on legal provisions, officially mandating that all political entities participating in elections apply them equally. Voluntary political party quotas are set by the political parties themselves, in order to guarantee the nomination of a certain number or proportion of women.

Quotas can be applied in the nomination process or be results-based, such as quotas that depend on how many seats a party is given. In order to gain a better understanding of the types of quotas that work most effectively, their use should be examined in the context of the electoral system. In this section, you will find information and publications about different types of quotas, materials concerning the effective application of quotas and an overview of the countries using them (see the Quota Project).

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