In Argentina, women represent 42% of the Senate and 39% of the Chamber of Deputies, and the country was a pioneer in adopting female quotas for Congress.
Last year, Mexico extended parity to all three branches at all levels of government.
In Bolivia, 52% of the parliament is made up of women, the highest rate in Latin America.
In Chile, in the last legislative elections, the number of senators increased from six to 10, from a total of 43 senators, and the total number of deputies went from 19 to 35, from a total of 155 deputies.
In Brazil, the increase in the number of federal deputies was 15%: from 51 to 77 elected, but the majority are still white women. Of these, 43 held the position of federal deputy for the first time.
Women in power during the pandemic
Covid-19, among many other things, has called attention at to how women leaders have managed the health crisis. Since the start of the current new coronavirus pandemic, the relationship between national female leaders and their effectiveness in managing the crisis has received much media attention.
Although these comparisons may seem purely anecdotal, one study - using comparative data across 194 countries - found that responses to Covid-19 are consistently better in women-led countries. To some extent, the result can be explained by the proactive and coordinated policy responses taken by them.
The research found that both the infection rate and the death rate for Covid-19 have been lower in countries governed by women than in those governed by men. In an effort to isolate the specific effect of having a female leader, they compared countries led by women with those led by men that are similar in terms of population, geography, gender equality, healthcare spending, and number of tourists. Regardless of how the data was cut, women-led countries fared better.
Reality shows that women in politics make a difference when they are aware of inequalities in general. Because they have been and continue to be victims of violations of rights and the moorings imposed by society, they have the desire to get rid of them.
Increasing the representation of women in political spheres is not just a gender issue. It is a matter of institutional change that improves policies for the general population.
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