Lack of funding seems to
be one of the most important factors hindering women from running for office.
Women candidates often need to raise funds for running their campaigns, with
little or no support from political parties, both in the process of winning the
nomination and in the electoral campaign. In some countries, political parties
have adopted voluntary measures to level the field for women candidates, such
as reducing or waiving nomination fees, fundraising initiatives, in-kind
contributions and subsidies covering travel costs, campaign materials or
childcare expenses. [1]
International IDEA’s 2014 publication “Funding
of Political Parties and Election Campaigns: A Handbook on Political Finance”
offers a general overview of political finance mechanism from a compared
perspective. Chapter 9 of this research, on “Women in Politics: Financing for
Gender Equality”, written by Jullie Ballington a Muriel Kahane, gives account
of a number of barriers that women face to finance their electoral campaigns,
as well as legal framework provisions and concrete political finance mechanisms
to promote their participation.
In several countries,
international electoral assistance projects have supported political parties
and other stakeholders in fighting gender inequalities in political and
campaign finance. A 2007 study carried out by UNDP, “Electoral Financing to Advance Women’s
Political Participation: A Guide for UNDP Support”, identifies entry
points to enhance women’s access to electoral finance and basic guidelines for
program design in this field.[2]
Example: In the United States of America, the main political parties
have launched political action committees (PACs) as partisan networks to
fundraise for women candidates. This is the main goal of the Democratic EMILY’s
List and the Republican WISH List. These platforms can channel large amounts of
money to candidates, which is important in candidate-centered systems where
both nomination and campaigning require substantial funding. Through both
initiatives, women candidates have benefited from contributions from
individuals and the private sector. EMILY’s List (Early Money is Like Yeast)
was created in 1985 to support Democratic women candidates running for office
by helping them raise funds through donation bundling. The WISH List was
created in 1992 to support Republican women candidates.[3]
Example: In Japan, the non-partisan organization Women in New World
International Network (WINWIN) raises funds to support first-time women
candidates running for office, mainly at the national level. This initiative
has drawn inspiration from the experience of the EMILY’s List in the United
States of America.[4]
Example: In Canada, the Liberal Party established the Judy LaMarsh
Fund to raise money for women candidates and help them get elected to
parliament, through fundraising events, direct mailing and the Internet. The
Liberal Party also provides subsidies for women candidates, including childcare
expenses and travel costs.[5]
Example: In Ghana, a statement made after a multi-party meeting in
2011 proposed to directly allocate 10 percent of public funds to political
parties for women candidates and reduce significantly the fees for women
candidates.[6]
Example: In Cambodia, the SRP provides women candidates with basic
materials for their campaign, including clothing and a bicycle.[7]
[2] Sidhu, Gretchen
Luchsinger and Meena, Ruth (2007): “Electoral Financing to Advance Women’s
Political Participation: A Guide for UNDP Support”, UNDP.
See:
https://agora-parl.org/node/10216
[3] UNDP and NDI (2012): op.
cit., p. 30.
[5] UNDP and NDI (2012): op.
cit., p. 30.
[6] UNDP and NDI (2012): op.
cit., p. 31.
[7] UNDP and NDI (2012): op.
cit., p. 30.
