As many as 196 women were chosen mayors in this year’s local general elections, as opposed to 185 in the elections of 2015. Alina Andronache, programs coordinator at the Partnership for Development Center, in a news conference at IPN said that analyzing the tendencies of the last three polls, it can be anticipated that Moldova will reach the quota of 40% of female candidates for mayor in three electoral cycles, which is in 2031. Currently, the figure stands at 27.1%.
Most of the female candidates for mayor and municipal/local councilors were fielded by political parties. Even if relevant provisions were introduced, the parties continue to put forward women for less eligible positions. The number of women who run independently remains small as these don’t think they will be able to win without the political support of a party, stated Alina Andronache.
Andrei Brighidin, assessment and development director at East Europe Foundation, said that the women in Moldova represent over 50% of the population. Regrettably, these remain underrepresented in all the areas of activity. “Even if the situation changed, there is yet place for improvement,” he noted.
Natalia Covrig, programs coordinator at the Partnership for Development Center, said the voters still prefer men for elective posts. However, the people’s perception of the involvement of women in politics changed a lot during the past ten years and the presence of women in the decision-making process is expected to be greater in several years.
Expert in statistical analysis Vasile Cantarji said the presence of women in relation to men at the electoral debates held during September 19 – October 19, 2019 was noticeably inequitable. The presence of women and men in politics is influenced also by the media.
The monitoring of elections from the gender perspective was conducted within the project “Supporting liberalism and women’s participation in decision-making in the Republic of Moldova” that is implemented by the Partnership for Development Center in partnership with UN Women and is financed by Sweden and UN Women.
