Women Speakers of national parliaments

Before 1945:

  • Austria was the only state where a woman was elected president of a chamber (the Bundesrat ) before World War II

From 1945 to 1997:

  • Only 42 of the 186 states with legislative institutions at some point in their history have had a woman chair of parliament or a chamber of parliament: this has occurred 78 times in all.
  • These are 18 European countries, 19 countries in the Americas, three African countries, one country in Asia and one country in the Pacific.
  • Twenty-four of the states in question had a bicameral parliament, and the presidency was given to a woman somewhat more frequently in the Senate than in the People's Chamber.

Current Status: 

  • Only 63 women preside over one of the Houses of the 190 Parliaments, 78 of which are bicameral. Women therefore occupy only 23.3% of the total filled posts of Presiding Officers of Parliament or of one of its Houses. See a full list of women Speakers below, including the link to global and regional percentages for Speakers.

Lower and unicameral chambers

Upper chambers


Country data on women speakers

CountryChamberFull nameYear of birthDate of appointment
AlbaniaParliamentLindita Nikolla196510 Sep 2021
AngolaNational AssemblyCarolina Cerqueira195616 Sep 2022
Antigua and BarbudaSenateAlincia Williams-Grant197225 Jun 2014
ArgentinaSenateVictoria Eugenia Villarruel197510 Dec 2023
AustraliaSenateSue Lines195326 Jul 2022
AustriaFederal CouncilMargit Göll196401 Jan 2024
AzerbaijanNational AssemblySahiba Gafarova195510 Mar 2020
BahamasHouse of AssemblyPatricia Deveaux196806 Oct 2021
BahamasSenateLashell Adderley196806 Oct 2021
BangladeshParliamentShirin Sharmin Chaudhury196630 Apr 2013
BelarusCouncil of the RepublicNatalya Kochanova196006 Dec 2019
BelgiumHouse of RepresentativesEliane Tillieux196613 Oct 2020
BelgiumSenateStephanie D'Hose198113 Oct 2020
BelizeHouse of RepresentativesValerie Woods197311 Dec 2020
BelizeSenateCarolyn Trench Sandiford196211 Dec 2020
CambodiaNational AssemblyKhuon Sudary195222 Aug 2023
CanadaSenateRaymonde Gagné195612 May 2023
Côte d'IvoireSenateKandia Kamissoko Camara195912 Oct 2023
CyprusHouse of RepresentativesAnita Demetriou198510 Jun 2021
Czech RepublicChamber of DeputiesMarketa Pekarova Adamova198410 Nov 2021
Equatorial GuineaSenateMaría Teresa Efua Asangono195712 Jul 2013
EswatiniSenateLindiwe Dlamini196523 Oct 2018
FranceNational AssemblyYaël Braun-Pivet197028 Jun 2022
GabonTransitional SenatePaulette Missambo194911 Sep 2023
GermanyGerman BundestagBärbel Bas196826 Oct 2021
GermanyFederal CouncilManuela Schwesig197401 Nov 2023
GrenadaSenateDessima Williams31 Aug 2022
IndonesiaHouse of RepresentativesPuan Maharani197302 Oct 2019
JamaicaHouse of RepresentativesJuliet Holness197126 Sep 2023
KiribatiHouse of AssemblyTangariki Reete196722 May 2020
LatviaParliamentDaiga Mieriņa196920 Sep 2023
LesothoSenateMamonaheng Mokitimi197011 Jul 2017
LiberiaThe Liberian SenateNyonblee Karnga-Lawrence15 Jan 2024
LithuaniaParliamentViktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen198313 Nov 2020
MadagascarNational AssemblyChristine Razanamahasoa195116 Jul 2019
MalawiNational AssemblyCatherine Gotani Hara197419 Jun 2019
MexicoChamber of DeputiesMarcela Guerra Castillo195901 Sep 2023
MexicoSenateAna Lilia Rivera Rivera197301 Sep 2023
MonacoNational CouncilBrigitte Boccone-Pagès195906 Oct 2022
MozambiqueAssembly of the RepublicEsperança Laurinda Francisco Nhiuane Bias195813 Jan 2020
PolandSenateMałgorzata Kidawa-Błońska195713 Nov 2023
Russian FederationCouncil of the FederationValentina Matvienko194921 Sep 2011
RwandaChamber of DeputiesDonatille Mukabalisa196005 Oct 2013
Saint Kitts and NevisNational AssemblyLanein Blanchette198625 Oct 2022
Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesHouse of AssemblyRochelle Forde197430 Nov 2020
Sao Tome and PrincipeNational AssemblyCelmira Sacramento08 Nov 2022
SloveniaNational AssemblyUrška Klakočar Zupančič197713 May 2022
South AfricaNational AssemblyNosiviwe Noluthando Mapisa-Nqakula195619 Aug 2021
South SudanTransitional National Legislative AssemblyJemma Nunu Kumba196602 Aug 2021
SpainCongress of DeputiesFrancina Armengol197117 Aug 2023
SwitzerlandCouncil of StatesEva Herzog196104 Dec 2023
Timor-LesteNational ParliamentMaria Fernanda Lay195422 Jun 2023
TogoNational AssemblyYawa Djigbodi Tsegan197123 Jan 2019
Trinidad and TobagoHouse of RepresentativesBridgid Annisette-George195823 Sep 2015
TurkmenistanAssemblyDunyagozel Akmuhammedovna Gulmanova198906 Apr 2023
UgandaParliamentAnita Annet Among25 Mar 2022
United Republic of TanzaniaNational AssemblyTulia Ackson197601 Feb 2022
United States of AmericaSenatePatty Murray195003 Jan 2023
United States of AmericaSenateKamala D. Harris196420 Jan 2021
UruguayHouse of RepresentativesAna Olivera Pessano195301 Mar 2024
UruguaySenateBeatriz Argimón196101 Mar 2020
UzbekistanSenateTanzila Narbaeva195621 Jun 2019
ZambiaNational AssemblyNelly Butete Kashumba Mutti195603 Sep 2021
ZimbabweSenateMabel M. Chinomona195811 Sep 2018