In person icon Where are the women and why (not)? Descriptive Representation, Committee Allocation, and Quotas in the European Parliament

Abstract

The European Parliament is seen as a gender equal actor, with 40 % of its elective members being women, more than most parliaments in Europe. Where women are situated within parliaments matters for agency, legitimacy, and representation. Recent academic work (Müller and Tommell, 2022; Dingler and Fortin Rittberger, 2022; Kantola and Miller, 2022) has explored the location of women in the European Parliament, signalling the importance of this vibrant esearch agenda. This panel takes a deeper dive and further addresses issues systematically such as: access to leadership positions in the European Parliament, cross-national differences in descriptive representation, committee allocation and the effect of quotas on continuing progression. Overall this panel contributes to an understanding of women MEPs’ access to power in the European Parliament, whilst taking an evolutionary perspective to their position in the parliament. Finally, the panel reflects on the efficacy of quotas for women’s continued progression throughout the EP’s structures.

Title	Details
Explaining Cross-National Differences in Women’s Descriptive Representation in the European Parliament: a Comparative Study	View Paper Details
So close but still too far away from power? Unveiling women’s access to influential positions in the European Parliament	View Paper Details
Ambition Management: How Gender Quotas Disrupt Career Progression Across Multiple Levels of Elected Office	View Paper Details
The evolution of the gender gap in the committees of the European Parliament	View Paper Details