In a city where politicians are earnestly vying for women’s votes who account for 46 per cent of Mumbai’s population, female participation in electoral politics remains abysmally low.

Of the total 334 candidates who will be fighting in the 36 Assembly seats of Mumbai, only 31 candidates are women, or just 9.3 per cent. Only 21 of the 36 Mumbai constituencies have a woman candidate.

As the voting for Maharashtra and Haryana assembly elections draw close, Twitter India has launched several initiatives to provide real-time updates on campaign trail, working closely with political parties and leaders on how to leverage Twitter for citizen engagement, and is encouraging voters to have their voices heard during the #AssemblyElections2019 taking place.

#HerPoliticalJourney

Out on the campaign trail before Poland’s parliamentary elections, Jolanta Banach, a leftwing candidate, has noticed a recurring pattern. “There’s a young couple out for a walk with a pushchair, and I approach them to offer our campaign leaflets. The guy says: ‘No, we don’t want it.’ And then the woman says: ‘Actually, I’d like one please.’”

The Network of Arab Women in Elections was launched Saturday in Tunis as part of a joint initiative involving the Arab Organisation for Electoral Management Bodies (ArabEMBs), the UNDP Regional Electoral Support Project and the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA).

The preliminary report on the observation of the elections, based on gender, conducted by the Tunisian Mediterranean Centre (TUNMED), called all the candidates to take into account the right of women voters in rural and border areas to take part in election campaigns, TUNMED Director Ahlem Nessiri said on Monday.