Representation of women in governmentDefinitionThe proportion of elected Members of Parliament (MPs) and local government bodies who are women.RelevanceThe representation of women in government can be seen as an indicator of political representation more generally. Representative political institutions engage a wide range of communities in the political process, draw on the talents and skills of the broadest group of people, and provide checks and balances on the use of political power. Current level and trends1. General electionsAs a result of the 2005 general election, women held 39 of the 121 seats in Parliament, or 32 percent. This was up from 28 percent in 2002. Under the first-past-the-post electoral system, women’s representation in Parliament increased from 13 percent in 1984 to 21 percent in 1993, then rose sharply to 29 percent in the first mixed-member-proportional (MMP) election held in 1996. There was a further small rise to 31 percent in 1999, followed by a decline to 28 percent in 2002. In 2005, women made up a far higher proportion of list MPs (44 percent) than electorate MPs (23 percent). In the 2002 election, the female proportions were similar in both categories. The majority of women elected to Parliament in 2005 were list MPs (59 percent). The proportion of female electorate MPs increased from 29 percent in 1996 to 56 percent in 2002, but fell to 41 percent in 2005. Figure CP2.1 Women as a proportion of elected Members of Parliament, 1984–2005
Sources: Electoral Commission (2002) p176; Electoral Commission (2006) International comparisonAt 33 percent in 2008, the percentage of women in New Zealand’s Parliament is considerably higher than the OECD median of 23 percent in recent years.78 New Zealand ranks ninth out of 30 OECD countries. Sweden has the highest proportion of women MPs with 47 percent, followed by Finland (42 percent), the Netherlands (39 percent), Denmark (38 percent), Spain and Norway (each 36 percent). Australia (27 percent), Canada (21 percent), the United Kingdom (20 percent) and the United States (17 percent) all have much lower female representation in national government than New Zealand. Current level and trends2. Local authority electionsIn the 2007 local government elections, 579 women were elected to local authorities.79 This represented 32 percent of elected members. The proportion of elected members who were women increased from 25 percent in 1989 to 31 percent in 1998 and remained at around that level in the two subsequent elections. Until the early-1990s women were more highly represented in local government than in national government. Since the first MMP election in 1996, women have had similar levels of representation in both Parliament and local authorities. Female candidates were more likely than male candidates to be elected to local authorities in each election year from 1989 to 1998, but this was reversed in 2001, when 41 percent of female candidates and 44 percent of male candidates were elected. In 2004, the proportions were more even (48 percent of female and 49 percent of male candidates elected). In 2007, female candidates were again more likely than male candidates to be elected (50 percent compared with 46 percent). In 2007, women’s representation was highest on district health boards (46 percent), followed by city councils (37 percent). Between 2004 and 2007, the share of elected members who were women increased in all local authority types except community boards and licensing and land trusts. Table CP2.1 Proportion (%) of members who were women, by type of local body, 1989–2007
Source: Department of Internal Affairs (2006) Table 6.4 and unpublished data for 2007 Table CP2.2 Women mayors, 1989–2007
Source: Department of Internal Affairs (2006) Table 6.5 and unpublished data for 2007 |
