The Women Party Leaders in Latin America
The diminished participation of Women Party Leaders in Latin America represents a significant democratic deficit within political parties.
by Carlos Guadarrama Cruz, UNAM y #ObservatorioReformas and Andrea Romero Rodríguez, UNAM y #ObservatorioReformas
Despite being fundamental organizations for democracy where equitable participation between men and women should exist, political parties are rarely led by women. As of 2024, only 18.51 percent of relevant political parties identified by the Observatorio de Reformas Políticas en América Latina (#ObservatorioReformas) have a woman in the top leadership position. The significant debt political parties still owe in building gender-equitable democracies in the region.
The outlook for women in party leadership positions remains discouraging. Data collected by #ObservatorioReformas shows that prior to 2023, 20.37 percent of relevant political parties had a woman in a leadership position. This statistic diminished in 2023, when only 11.11 percent of political parties had a woman as their leader. The data indicates how difficult it has been for political parties to ensure women's presence in significant positions within their internal organization.
Figure 1. Women leaders of relevant political parties in Latin America (2022-2024)
Source: data compiled from the Observatorio de Reformas Políticas en América Latina.
Reviewing data from 2022 to 2024, 38.88 percent of relevant political parties in Latin America had, at some point, a woman in a leadership position. This list includes the three political parties from Costa Rica, almost all Chilean parties (with the exception of Partido Renovación Nacional), as well as Peruvian political party Fuerza Popular . Notably, Fuerza Popular has even been led by the same woman, Keiko Fujimori, for several years. In many countries of the region, none of their relevant political parties have considered having women leaders in recent years, as exemplified by Bolivia, El Salvador, Panama, Paraguay and the Dominican Republic. Of the parties that have had women leaders, 52.40 percent have left-wing ideological orientations. However, only 42.86 percent established parity rules for their leadership structures.
Table 1. Relevant political parties in five countries without female leaders (2022-2024)
Source: data compiled from the Observatorio de Reformas Políticas en América Latina.
It is worth considering what feminist studies on political parties have revealed. Some research has outlined hypotheses about the factors that explain the absence of women in leadership positions. A group of studies indicates that culture plays a crucial role in women's level of representation and participation within political organizations. Women have systematically been assigned caregiving tasks that extend beyond family spheres, affecting their professional lives and, consequently, their roles in politics. Other studies suggest that a party’s ideological orientation influences women's presence in leadership roles, with left-wing parties generally providing more favorable for women's political advancement.
Some contributions highlight the impact of rule design on access to leadership positions. Selection methods strongly influence whether women reach these roles. It has been found that parties selecting their leadership through collegiate groups or mixed selection processes increase the likelihood of women assuming leadership roles. Moreover, larger selectorates, such as primary elections, often favor men and can be manipulated to give the appearance of gender parity without achieving it in practice.
The electoral regulatory framework is directly linked to the lack of strict measures that not only encourage but also require gender parity representation at all levels of political parties' internal structures, particularly in leadership roles. This is because the methods for selecting party authorities are often left open to interpretation.
The formal rules of parties are part of the elements that shape and limit women’s political influence in their internal structures. More institutionalized parties tend to create more democratic and gender-balanced arenas. However, this is problematic because the proper interpretation and meticulous follow-through of formal rules is one of the weaknesses of political parties in Latin America. This specifically refers to the enforcement of quotas for selecting party authorities, which establish a minimum of 30 percent and a maximum of 70 percent of candidates for each gender. Furthermore, there is reluctance to apply parity rules in the formation of leadership bodies, which are only present in the statutes of 37 percent of the relevant political parties identified by the Observatorio de Reformas Políticas en América Latina.
Having commissions, secretariats or women's movements within political organizations is not enough, as women are still not able to access leadership roles in political parties. Despite women’s persistent efforts to achieve candidacies, which have led to rules for gender parity in the nomination of political representatives, there remains a long way to go in order to exert effective power within political organizations.
The scarcity of women in leadership positions within Latin American political parties underscores the significant work still required to achieve true parity democracies. It is crucial to increase women's presence in decision-making spaces, moving beyond the rhetoric of some parties and male leaders that only use women’s participation merely as a talking point to attract voters, while covertly perpetuating exclusionary practices and political violence.
It is important to emphasize that the absence of women party leaders represents a significant democratic deficit within political parties. Since politics affects everyone, the internal workings of the political parties must inherently include women in decision-making processes. By failing to incorporate women’s ideas, proposals, and perspectives, parties significantly diminish their potential for innovation and comprehensive representation. We must actively work to expand women’s opportunities within party organizations, ensuring these efforts translate into meaningful improvements in the lives of Latin American women. Those of us committed to expanding women’s effective participation within parties must champion political reforms that prioritize genuine inclusion and substantive equality.
How to cite:
Guadarrama, Carlos and Romero, Andrea (7 de octubre del 2024). The Women Party Leaders in Latin America. Blog #LabData, Observatorio de Reformas Políticas en América Latina. https://observatorioreformas.substack.com/p/076353e4-14f2-4782-8c44-a1c5ad19ff6b