Parliaments & Representatives

Theresa May, Britain’s ex-prime minister, says that rather than reaching for social media the second major news breaks, former world leaders would be better off taking a step back and bringing a “measured voice” to the table. For female leaders in particular, she advises: “Don’t react in the way you think other people think you should react.”

“Be a measured voice.” That is the advice former U.K. prime minister Theresa May has for fellow ex-world leaders.

Americans are deeply divided about the use of quotas in hiring and education, but quotas are used in many countries to assure a balance of power between men and women in legislative bodies. New research co-authored at UC Berkeley finds that when governments are gender-balanced, people believe the political process and policy outcomes are more fair and democratic.

In a major study that included 17,000 people in a dozen countries—in Europe, the Pacific and the Americas—researchers found overwhelming support for a balance of representation between men and women, even when quotas are needed to achieve it. The U.S. and the U.K. don't use such quotas for national office, but even so, respondents in the study saw strong benefit, said Berkeley political scientist Amanda Clayton, the lead author.

The most important finding "is that citizens in democracies around the world strongly prefer women's equality to women's exclusion, regardless of how the equality is achieved," Clayton said in an interview.

Full article published by Phys on 22 May 2025.

Image by Phys

Online Gender-Based Violence (OGBV) has become a pervasive threat in the digital age. It undermines democratic processes, silences marginalised voices, and perpetuates systemic inequality. Harassment, threats, and abuse—both online and offline—have become so common that women and gender-minoritised people often view them as “the cost of doing politics.” As a result, 21 percent of women parliamentarians in Europe said that they did not want to pursue another term in office.

This briefing is part of a series examining OGBV on TikTok in English, German, French and Hungarian. It is part of a project titled ‘Monitoring Online Gender Based Violence Around the European Parliament Election 2024’, funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.

This report summarises ISD’s findings across key issue areas and offers evidence-based recommendations for creating safer, more inclusive online spaces that uphold democratic values. ISD’s findings demonstrate that addressing OGBV requires a holistic approach – one that not only strengthens content moderation but also tackles the underlying social norms and biases that enable online gender-based violence.

Article published by the Institute of Strategic Dialogue on 19 May 2025.

Image by Institute of Strategic Dialogue

Elise Pereira Nunes is the Deputy Mayor of Tours (France) for gender equality, international relations and city networks. An academic expert in gender issues, Elise has been a long-time activist in several movements for women and LGBTQI+ rights and regularly contributes to seminars. Her political commitment stems from her desire to be a voice at the intersection of the worlds of academic research, citizen mobilization and political action. As a deputy mayor, she demonstrates that exchanges between local authorities, locally and internationally, are vectors of progress on environmental, economic and societal issues. Internationally, she advocates for the recognition of local governments within the multilateral system and champions the political participation and empowerment of women. Elise joined a two-day Expert Group Meeting organized by UN Women to address one of the most persistent barriers to gender equality in political and public life: discriminatory social norms. This experts’ meeting was organized under the WYDE | Women’s Leadership, funded by the European Union, which is a collaborative global effort aimed at advancing women’s full and effective political participation and decision-making at all levels, especially those most often left furthest behind.

“In my role as Deputy Mayor, my focus is on making gender equality a core part of our city’s policies. Our goal is to create a city where everyone, regardless of gender, origin, age, or ability, can thrive. I also connect gender equality with international affairs, building partnerships with sister cities across Europe, Japan, South Korea, and Spain. Change must happen both locally and globally—if the world around us struggles, we will be affected too.

Of course, working in politics comes with challenges. Bureaucracy, budget constraints, and slow progress can be frustrating. But meaningful change requires both short-term action and long-term vision. Some policies take immediate effect, while others take years to show results. What matters is planting seeds for a better future. I take pride in pushing these issues forward and making gender equality a cross-cutting priority in city governance.

One challenge I faced was entering politics without ties to any political party or organization. I had to learn how political structures operate while ensuring my voice was heard as someone from civil society. Even if you don’t belong to a party, it’s essential to make politicians understand that they need engaged citizens, just as much as citizens need politicians to represent them. Citizens shape the projects that affect their communities, while political parties provide the platform and resources to implement them. It’s a partnership that can drive real change.

Another challenge is overcoming stereotypes about women in politics. Despite gender parity laws, I often hear claims that it’s "hard to find women willing to engage" or that their "quality" is questionable, implying that all male candidates are automatically competent. I wanted to prove that being a woman from civil society is not a limitation. 

I also firmly believe in feminist municipalism. If we want more women in politics, we must demonstrate that it’s possible, including at local level. Too often, those who want to get involved hesitate because they feel they lack legitimacy, whereas their diverse perspectives are essential. Diverse voices—across social, economic, ethnic, racial, gender or disability backgrounds—enrich decision-making.

Local politics is crucial because it’s where real engagement with citizens happens, it’s where we can understand and respond to people’s needs. We may not be able to solve every problem, but we can do our best to make an impact with the power we have. Women have a major role to play in shaping the future. If there isn’t enough space for us, we will make space, because our voice is needed.”

Interview published by Capacity4Dev (European Union) on 14 May 2025.

When Florida state Rep. Fiona McFarland's infant daughter, Grace Melton, crawled for the first time, the mom of four was right next door, hard at work with her legislative policy staff in the state Capitol.

Thanks to the on-site child care available in the statehouse, McFarland didn't miss that magical first milestone in her 7-month-old's young life.

“The sitter I had with her just grabbed me out of my meeting right next door and I came over and got to witness it,” McFarland recalled.

As more women and young people run for public office, they're bringing more than fresh policy ideas to statehouses — some are bringing their kids.

Like working parents across the country, some lawmakers are scrambling to find child care that fits their often unpredictable schedules, at a price they can afford. Rushing back and forth from their districts, they juggle meetings with constituents and coordinate their children's drop-offs, power through late-night floor sessions and step out to pump breast milk between votes, hoping to make it home for their kids' bedtime.

“Looking back, I'm like, ‘How did I do that?'" Michigan state Sen. Stephanie Chang said, recalling those frenzied years when she was a new legislator and a new mom.

The Democrat used to race across the state with her baby and freezer bags of milk in tow, leaving her daughter with family members so she could make her 9 a.m. committee meetings at the state Capitol in Lansing.

Full article published by NBC Miami on 10 May 2025.

Image credits: NBC Miami

Hind Kabawat, the only female minister in Syria’s new government, in her house, in Bab Touma, a majority Christian neighborhood of Damascus. Hind Kabawat hopes her long experience as a conflict mediator can help Syria’s next generation. The challenges are immense.Hind Kabawat, the only female minister in Syria’s new government, in her house, in Bab Touma, a majority Christian neighborhood of Damascus.

In a white pantsuit, Hind Kabawat stood out a mile, the only woman in a lineup of 23 men in suits, all ministers of the interim Syrian government just sworn in, flanking the president.

“I want more women and I did tell the president the first day we met,” Ms. Kabawat said in an interview a few days after her appointment. “This is for me very important because it wasn’t very comfortable to be there.”

Her appointment as minister of social affairs and labor has been welcomed by many in Syria and internationally, both as a woman and as a representative of Syria’s Christian minority. It was taken as a sign that Syria’s new leader, President Ahmed al-Shara, was broadening his government beyond his tight circle of rebel fighters to include a wider selection of technocrats and members of Syria’s ethnic and religious minorities.

Full article here published by The New York Times.

Image source: NYT