Switzerland
Data on women
empty
Basic information > About parliament
Speaker
Speaker
Irène
Kälin
(Female)
Year of birth
1987
Secretary general
Secretary General
Philippe
Schwab
(Male)
Notes
Additional information about the Secretary General, in particular regarding their term.
Appointed on 1 July 2013.
Members
Current number of members, by sex
Men
The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Women
The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Percentage of women
Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
Age
Average age of all members
Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
Total number of MPs, 45 years of age or younger
Total number of MPs, 46 years of age or older
Total per sex
Total of male
Total of female
Total per age interval
18-20
0
31-40
41-45
46-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
1
91 and over
0
Number of members, by age
| 18 - 20 | 21 - 30 | 31 - 40 | 41 - 45 | 46 - 50 | 51 - 60 | 61 - 70 | 71 - 80 | 81 - 90 | 91 and over | Totals per gender | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Totals per age interval | 0 | 8 | 43 | 28 | 25 | 69 | 26 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total <= 45: 79 | Total >= 46: 121 | ||||||||||
| Male | 0 | 3 | 26 | 12 | 14 | 44 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 117 |
| Female | 0 | 5 | 17 | 16 | 11 | 25 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 83 |
Reserved seats and quotas
Electoral quota for women
Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
Notes
Voluntary political party quotas.
Elections > Election results
Candidates
Total number of candidates
Total number of people who registered as candidates for election. Does not include people who stood as candidates to become "substitute members".
4,645
Number of female candidates
Number of female candidates
1,873
Percentage of women candidates
The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women candidates by the total number of candidates.
40.32%
Number of candidates, by sex
Number of female candidates
Number of female candidates
1873
Percentage of women candidates
The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women candidates by the total number of candidates.
40.32%
Results
Members elected, by sex
Number of men elected
117
Number of women elected
83
Percentage of women elected
The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women elected in the election and the number of seats at stake at the election.
41.5%
Number of women after election or renewal, by mode of designation
Women Directly Elected
83
New legislature
Total number of men after the election
The total number of male parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
117
Total number of women after the election
The total number of female parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
83
First Speaker of the new legislature
First Speaker of the new legislature
First name of the Speaker of the new legislature following the election or renewal.
Isabelle
Moret
(Female)
Political party
FDP.The Liberals (FDP/PLR)
Date of election
02.12.2019
Elections > Historical data on women
Women's suffrage
Women’s right to vote
Women’s right to vote
Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1971
National or local
Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage
Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes
Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
Due to the cantonal and federal system of granting suffrage, the political participation of women was not fully integrated on a national level until 1990. Appenzell was the last canton to recognize women's suffrage.
Women’s right to stand for election
Women's right to stand for election
Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1971
National or local
Stand for Election: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage
Stand for Election : Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes
Stand for Election: Additional Notes on right to stand for election
Due to the cantonal and federal system of granting suffrage, the political participation of women was not fully integrated on a national level until 1990. Appenzell was the last canton to recognize women's suffrage.
First woman in parliament
First woman in parliament
Year in which first woman entered parliament
1971
Notes
First woman speaker
Year of first woman speaker
Date at which, for the first time in the country's parliamentary history, a woman became Presiding Officer of Parliament or of one of its Houses.
1977
Specialized body - Women's caucus
Cross-Party Group of Women Parliamentarians
(January 1990)
Formal or informal
Informal
The caucus is open to male MPs
Yes
The caucus is cross-party
Yes
Notes
This group is a successor of the Group of Women Parliamentarians which was established in 1990.
There are rules governing the functioning of the caucus
No
Activities
Issues dealt with by the caucus
The purpose of the group is to facilitate networking among female members of the Swiss parliament, so it organizes various events for women.
In addition to the group, the Parliament also maintains a website "Political Women" to encourage women to be/become politically active, by providing materials (documents, videos etc.) on success stories, female role models, and by organizing events dedicated to the topic.
In addition to the group, the Parliament also maintains a website "Political Women" to encourage women to be/become politically active, by providing materials (documents, videos etc.) on success stories, female role models, and by organizing events dedicated to the topic.
The caucus has a strategic plan or plan of action
No
The caucus has a communication plan
No