“There’s still a long way to go to have gender balance in politics”.
So says a group that works to inspire, equip and support women to run in local and national elections.
Women For Election has welcomed the increase from four to six on Kilkenny County Council and the return of two in Carlow but was disappointed more weren’t added, in particular in Tullow & Bagenalstown Local Electoral Areas both of which comprise male councillors.
25 women had run for local authority seats across both counties, close to a third of them successful.
Katie Deegan says “More women at decision-making tables makes politics work better for everyone. More women means that women’s lived experience will be included in decisions. Our local government will be stronger with better representation of the people it serves, and a balance of men and women involved”.
She adds; “However, the pace of change is too slow. Kilkenny and Carlow will have to wait three to four more election cycles – 20 years – or more to have gender balance on their Councils. Nationally, despite record numbers of women running in these elections there was no improvement in the percentage of women elected to 26%. At this glacial pace, it will take decades to address the gender gap in local government nationally. We need to accelerate the pace of change. It’s time for gender quotas in local elections, the same as at general elections, to encourage and support the work of political parties to include the very many talented and capable women in our communities.”
In conclusion, Ms Deegan notes; “Women for Election will continue our work to inspire, equip and support women to run in local and national elections, ensuring that our local and national government truly reflects the diversity within our communities. Local Government also serves as a crucial entry point for women to national government, and if we are to change our world standing of women in national government – currently Ireland is 103rd in the world – we need to do much more to support more women to enter local government”.
