Assembly Elections: More women in the race, fewer at the finish line
Source: India Today
As Assam, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Kerala prepare for Assembly elections, two decades of electoral data reveal a clear pattern: more women are entering the fray, but they are not winning in proportion to their participation. In contrast, men’s win percentages have remained relatively steady over the last 20 years.
Let’s look at this state by state.
West Bengal
While Mamata Banerjee, one of India’s most prominent women leaders, has been chief minister since 2011, women’s overall electoral performance in West Bengal has been bad. While more women contested elections, the number of women victors has only declined. They did not win proportionally to the increase in participation.
From 2001 to 2006, women’s victory rate increased. But after 2006, it began to decline steadily. By 2021, only 16.7 per cent of women contesting the election won seats — quite a fall from 24.6 per cent in 2001.
Despite this decline over the past two decades, women in West Bengal have consistently recorded higher winning percentages than men. In 2001, 17 per cent of male candidates won their seats, compared to 24.6 per cent of women candidates. This pattern has largely continued. In 2021, 13.4 per cent of men won, while that figure stood at 16.7 per cent for women.
As Assam, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Kerala prepare for Assembly elections, two decades of electoral data reveal a clear pattern: more women are entering the fray, but they are not winning in proportion to their participation. In contrast, men’s win percentages have remained relatively steady over the last 20 years.
Let’s look at this state by state.
West Bengal
While Mamata Banerjee, one of India’s most prominent women leaders, has been chief minister since 2011, women’s overall electoral performance in West Bengal has been bad. While more women contested elections, the number of women victors has only declined. They did not win proportionally to the increase in participation.
From 2001 to 2006, women’s victory rate increased. But after 2006, it began to decline steadily. By 2021, only 16.7 per cent of women contesting the election won seats — quite a fall from 24.6 per cent in 2001.
Despite this decline over the past two decades, women in West Bengal have consistently recorded higher winning percentages than men. In 2001, 17 per cent of male candidates won their seats, compared to 24.6 per cent of women candidates. This pattern has largely continued. In 2021, 13.4 per cent of men won, while that figure stood at 16.7 per cent for women.