Gender Quotas Database
Armenia
Western Asia
Single / Lower House
Azgayin Zhoghov / National Assembly
| Total seats | 107 |
| Total women | 38 |
| Percentage of women | 36% |
| Election year | 2021 |
| Electoral system | List PR |
| Quota type | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Election details | IDEA Voter Turnout - IPU Parline |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas | Electoral law |
“In the first part of the national electoral list of a political party, alliance of political parties and each of the political parties included in the alliance, the number of representatives of each sex, starting from the 1st place on the list, must not exceed 70 per cent in each integer group of 3 (1-3, 1-6, 1-9 and subsequently up to the end of the list). The first part of the national electoral list of a political party (alliance of political parties) shall include no less than 80 and no more than 300 candidates. The first part of the national electoral list of a political party (alliance of political parties) may include persons that are not members of that political party (any of member political parties to the alliance) the number of which may not exceed 30 per cent of the total number of the candidates included in the first part of the national electoral list.” (Electoral Code from 2018, Art. 83.4) |
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law |
Art. 86.2:The Central Electoral Commission shall reject the registration of the electoral list of a political party (alliance of political parties), where: 3) the national electoral list or any district electoral list does not comply with the requirements prescribed by Article 83 of this Code. (Electoral Code from 2018, Art. 86.2) |
| Is the provision of direct public funding to political parties related to gender equality among candidates? | Yes |
If the less-represented gender makes up less than 20% of the positions on the party's executive board, public funding is reduced by 20%. If the figure is 20-40%, public funding is reduced by 10%. If the figure is at least 40%, there is no reduction in public funding. See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
| Are there provisions for other financial advantages to encourage gender equality in political parties? |
|
20% of public funding must be spent on including women, youth, persons with disabilities and ethnic minorities in the activities of the party. See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
Quota at the Sub-National Level
| Quota type | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas | Electoral law |
In the electoral list of a political party (alliance of political parties) and each of the political parties included in the alliance, the number of representatives of each sex, starting from the 1st place on the list, must not exceed 70 per cent in each integer group of 3 (1-3, 1-6, 1-9 and subsequently up to the end of the list). (Electoral Code of 2018, Article 130.2) |
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law |
Refusal to register a party's electoral list or a candidate included in the electoral list 1. The Electoral Commission rejects the registration of the electoral list of the party (alliance of parties) if: 1) all documents have not been submitted, or the submitted documents are incomplete or falsified; 2) the electoral list does not meet the requirements set forth in part 2 of Article 130 of this Code (except for the cases when the non-compliance is due to a circumstance that arose after the nomination); (Electoral Code from 2018, Art. 132.2) |
Voluntary Political Party Quotas*
| Party | Official Name | Details, Quota provisions |
|---|---|---|
| Shamiram Women's Party | (SWP) |
An all women's party. 5 parties passed the 5 percent barrier to the National Assembly in the elections 1995. Shamiram was one of the five, with 20 percent and 8 seats. The party was not represented in 1999 and 2003. |
| Union for National Self-Determination | Sotsial Demokratalkan Hnrchakyan Kusakutyun (UNSD) |
UNSD has a 20 percent quota. In 1995 UNSD passed the barrier to the National Assembly, and was represented by 7,5 percent, i.e. 3 members. The party was not represented in the parliament 1999 and 2003. |
* Only political parties represented in parliament are included. When a country has legislated quotas in place, only political parties that have voluntary quotas that exceed the percentage/number of the national quota legislation are presented in this table.
Additional information
The first quota legislation was adopted in 1999 and required that political party lists of candidates for the proportional representation election contain no less than 5 per cent female candidates. In the 2003 elections, seven women were elected (5.3 per cent), but one was designated as a cabinet minister, leaving six women in parliament (3.8 per cent). For the 2007 parliamentary elections, the required gender quota provision was increased to 15 per cent but none of the five women who contested seats in the first-past-the-post system were elected, while 12 women were elected under the proportional representation system. The current quota system was introduced in 2011 and was applied to the 2012 parliamentary elections, introducing the improved ranking order requirement and thus helping to position women candidates evenly across candidate lists.
The statutory number decreased from 131 to 101 in accordance with the Constitutional amendments were adopted in a referendum in December 2015 and a new electoral code came into force in July 2016. Up to four minority representatives may be elected.
The gender quota plans to be changed in 2021 to guarantee that, at least, 1 in 3 (33%) are women.
Sources
Legal Sources:
- Constitution of Armenia - Link
- Electoral Code - Link
- Political Party Law - Link
- Law on ensuring equal rights and equal opportunities for women and men (2013) - Link
Other Sources:
- Parliament of Armenia - Link
- Electoral Commission - Link
- Armenia's New Electoral Code: Part III. Quotas for Women and Ethnic Minorities. (EVN Report).
Additional reading
- See the latest updates on Armenia on iKNOW Politics
- Asian Development Bank (2019).Armenia Country Gender Assessment
- UNDP (Ongoing project 2021)."Women in Politics Armenia"
- Inter-Parliamentary Union. 1997. Men and Women in Politics: Democracy Still in the Making, A World Comparative Study. Geneva: Inter-Parliamentary Union
- Armenian Parliament website, http://www.parliament.am
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