“The terms "temporary special measures" and "quotas" have sometimes been used interchangeably. Quota mechanisms are actually only one type of TSM related to a country's electoral system or candidate selection processes that are intended to guarantee or promote the representation of women or other underrepresented groups in an elected body.”[1]

The three main types of gender quotas are as follows:

• Legislated candidate quotas;
• Legislated reserved seats;
• Voluntary political party quotas.

Relevant parts of this section are based on the 2013 “Atlas of Gender Quotas”, jointly published by International IDEA, the Inter-Parliamentary Union and Stockholm University.[2]

For more information on this topic, please see related content of the ACE Project, including:

• The section “Voluntary Party Candidate Quotas” in the topic area Parties and Candidates.
• The section “Legislated Quotas” in the topic area Parties and Candidates.
• The consolidated reply on “Experiences with reserved seats or constituencies for women in parliamentary elections.”
• The consolidated reply on “Gender quotas in Africa.”
• The consolidated reply on “Abrogation of quotas for women”.