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).