Women’s Political Empowerment in Latvia

Women in Politics: Why Are They Under-represented? A new FROGEE policy brief on the situation in the region, containing an overview of the situation in Latvia written by Dominik Gerber (SSE Riga, BICEPS).

In spite of favorable historical and institutional predispositions, political executives and assemblies in Latvia fail to reflect the gender diversity of the population they represent. In this brief, I sketch three broad accounts that contribute to the explanation of this outcome. They pertain to the persistence of a gender gap in political ambition , to obstacles hampering the nomination of women in electoral ballot lists, and to structural impediments within the Latvian p arty system after 1991. I conclude by recommending a set of policy measures obstacles, highlighting the absence of binding, legally anchored, commitments to the targeting these political empowerment of women.

The full Report on the situation in Latvia is available here.

Reports from Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Poland, Ukraine and Russia are available in English and the national languages here.

About FROGEE Policy Briefs

FROGEE Policy Briefs is a special series aimed at providing overviews and the popularization of economic research related to gender equality issues. Debates around policies related to gender equality are often highly politicized. We believe that using arguments derived from the most up to date research-based knowledge would help us build a more fruitful discussion of policy proposals and in the end achieve better outcomes.

The aim of the briefs is to improve the understanding of research-based arguments and their implications, by covering the key theories and the most important findings in areas of special interest to the current debate. The briefs start with short general overviews of a given theme, which are followed by a presentation of country-specific contexts, specific policy challenges, implemented reforms and a discussion of other policy options.

Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in policy briefs and other publications are those of the authors; they do not necessarily reflect those of the FREE Network and its research institutes.