The ACE Gender and
Elections topic area was written by Lluís Juan Rodríguez, as lead author, under
the supervision of Aleida Ferreyra, Electoral Policy Specialist in UNDP. Lluís
Juan Rodríguez has contributed to the promotion of women’s participation and
gender equality in politics and elections, through his work with UNDP,
International IDEA and IFES, among other organizations, in a number of
countries, including Paraguay, Guatemala, Mexico, Haiti, Madagascar and Spain.
Aleida Ferreyra
supervised and supported the entire writing process of this topic area,
providing essential guidance and valuable indications on contents and
structure. Aleida Ferreyra serves as a Policy Electoral Specialist for UNDP,
based in New York since 2010. She is responsible for developing policy and
knowledge in the area of electoral assistance and providing electoral support
to UNDP country offices and projects in the field.
This topic area was
enriched with the valuable contributions of ACE partners, through an in-depth
peer-review process. Aleida Ferreyra and Risa Arai, from UNDP, contributed to
the improvement of the topic area with relevant information and examples. The
IFES’ team also supported the consolidation of this topic area, with
contributions from Gabrielle Bardall, Meagan Allen, Marita Ivonne Jimenez,
Stephen W. Weiland, Gina Chirillo and Brikena Avdyli. In representation of
International IDEA, Therese Pearce-Laanela, Sofie Bingemark and Maryam Safi had
some suggestions regarding this topic area, including important bibliographical
references. Furthermore, André Fecteau, from Elections Canada, took part in the
peer-review process.
This topic area also
benefitted from the comments of Julie Ballington and Gabriella Borovsky, on
behalf of UN Women. Ms. Ballington’s previous work on gender equality in
electoral management, women’s participation in political parties and violence
against women in elections (VAWE) has provided a solid background to some of
the chapters of this topic area.
Carmen Echauri, as an
independent gender expert, also contributed to the peer-review process with
examples from Paraguay, her home country.
This topic area is in
debt with existing research and publications on women’s participation and
gender equality in the electoral process, since some of its sections are mainly
based on a number of studies carried out by ACE partners and other
organizations. In particular, the following references should be acknowledged:
- Section 3. “Promoting Gender
Equality and Women’s Participation in Political Parties” is mainly based on
UNDP and NDI’s 2012 “Empowering
Women for Stronger Political Parties: A Guidebook to Promote Women’s Political
Participation”, one of the key publications in this field, which
offers a general overview about what political parties can do to advance
women’s participation in politics. The lead author of this guidebook is Julie
Ballington, and contributors and case study authors include Randi Davis, Mireya
Reith, Lincoln Mitchell, Carole Njoki, Alyson Kozma and Elizabeth Powley. Other
parts of this section, especially content regarding LGBTI participation in
politics and elections, is unedited work by the lead author of this topic area.
- Section 4. “Gender Mainstreaming
within Electoral Management Bodies” is mainly based on UNDP and UN Women’s 2016
publication “Inclusive
Electoral Processes: A Guide for Electoral Management Bodies on Promoting
Gender Equality and Women’s Participation”, which offers a general overview about what
can be done to mainstream gender from the perspective of electoral management.
The main contributors of this guide are Julie Ballington, Gabrielle Bardall,
Sonia Palmieri and Kate Sullivan. Other parts of this section, especially
content regarding LGBTI participation in politics and elections, is unedited
work by the lead author of this topic area.
- Section 5. “Promoting Gender
Equality and Women’s Participation throughout the Electoral Cycle” is mainly
based on the aforementioned UNDP and UN Women’s 2016 publication “Inclusive
Electoral Processes: A Guide for Electoral Management Bodies on Promoting
Gender Equality and Women’s Participation.” Other parts of this section,
especially content regarding LGBTI participation in politics and elections, is
unedited work by the lead author of this topic area.
- Section 8, “Violence Against Women
in Elections and Other Forms of Gender-Based Electoral Violence” is mainly
based on UNDP and UN Women’s 2017 publication “Preventing
Violence Against Women in Elections: A Programming Guide”, which
offers an overview about prevention and mitigation strategies against VAWE. The
lead author of this guide is Julie Ballington, and contributing authors are
Gabrielle Bardall and Gabriella Borowsky. This section also includes content
from the studies published by IFES in this field, notably the work of Gabrielle
Bardall: “Breaking
the Mold: Understanding Gender and Electoral Violence” (2011).
