Representation of women in Ukraine
Representation of women in Ukraine
Facilitator - Sara Staino , November 15. 2006Original question:
I am interested in information concerning the Ukrainian electoral system and its effect on women’s representation in parliament as well as to see if there is a difference from the situation before the mixed electoral system of 1998.
I hope that you will be able to assist me.
Links to related resources:
ACE Network Facilitator's response:
Thank you for your question regarding the electoral system and representation of women in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian electoral system was – as in many of the former Soviet republics – a majority system conducted in two rounds; a so called Two-Round System, in which one candidate was elected if he or she gained an absolute majority of votes in one district (in a first or a second round). For the 1998 elections, the Ukrainian electoral system changed to a Mixed electoral system consisting of two elements (one List Proportional Representation element and one Plurality/Majority element) on two different tiers; the same voters being able to vote under both elements.
In Ukraine, more specifically, 225 seats are elected by List Proportional Representation (with a 4% threshold) and 225 seats are elected by First Past the Post (simple plurality in single member districts), and the two elements work completely parallel to each other; they are unlinked meaning that the results of one does not influence the other. This makes the electoral system a Parallel system (as opposed to a Mixed Member Proportional system which is also a Mixed system, but which links the two elements and lets the List PR element compensate for any disproportionality arising under the plurality/majority element). For more information about electoral systems in general and Parallel systems in particular, please see the "Electoral System" section in ACE.
However, for the 2006 elections Ukraine moved to a completely proportional system using one nationwide electoral district (with a 3% threshold). Under this system, 32 women were elected in 2006, making up 7.1 per cent of the elected members of the national parliament.
By looking at the IPU data on women in parliaments you can see that the representation of women has been the lowest under the TRS system and higher under the Parallel and List PR system.
- 1994 election: 3.8 percent
- 1998 election: 7.8 percent
- 2002 election: 5.3 percent
This is a relationship that is rather common. Plurality and majority systems generally to rather poorly when it comes to the representation of women, while mixed systems and proportional systems generally do better. Important to mention however is that the current 7.1 per cent score is well below the global average of women in national parliaments, and it is even below any of the regional averages. Many countries use quotas to increase the number of elected women (see the International IDEA & Stockholm University Global Database of Quotas for Women) but Ukraine is not one of them.
For more information about electoral systems and quotas:
International IDEA is currently working on an overview of the relationship between electoral systems and quotas; an overview which will be available on the IDEA website.
The handbook: “Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers. A Revised Edition.” is available in full text on the International IDEA website.
The opinions expressed by the ACE Network Facilitator do not necessarily reflect those of the ACE Partner organizations.
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