Gender Quotas Database

See data for special areas Taiwan and Kosovo


Thailand

Thailand

South-Eastern Asia

Thailand has a Bicameral parliament with the use of voluntary party quotas. 97 of 500 (19%) seats in the Rathasapha / National Assembly are held by women.

At a glance

Structure of parliament Bicameral

Are there legislated quotas

For the Single / Lower house? No
For the Upper house? No
For the Sub-national level? No

Are there voluntary quotas?

Adopted by political parties? Yes
Is there additional information? Yes

Single / Lower House

Rathasapha / National Assembly

Upper House

Wuthisapha / Senate

Voluntary Political Party Quotas*

* 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

Thailand adopted a new constitution in 2017, which including a paragraph on the requirements for political parties candidate lists to include women on equal terms as men (IPU 2019). 

 

In the preparation of a list of candidates under paragraph two, the members of the political party shall be allowed to participate in the deliberations, and regard shall be had to the candidates for election from different regions and equality between men and women (Article 90, Constitution 2017).

Article 90 states that "any political party which sends a candidate for election on a constituency basis shall have the right to send a candidate for election on a party list basis. In sending a candidate for election on a party list basis, each political party shall prepare one list of candidates, in which candidates for election of each political party shall not be the same as others’ and not be the same as the names of candidates for election on a constituency basis. Such list of candidates shall be submitted to the Election Commission prior to the end of the period for application for candidacy for election of Members of the House of Representatives on a constituency basis. In the preparation of a list of candidates under paragraph two, the members of the political party shall be allowed to participate in the deliberations, and regard shall be had to the candidates for election from different regions and equality between men and women (Article 90, Constitution 2017)."

 

Sources

Legal Sources:

  • Constitution of Thailand 2017 (amended through 2021) - Link
  • Electoral Law for the House of Representatives 2018 (amended through 2023 Thai/ English)- Thai/English
  • Political Parties Act 2007 (amended through 2023)- Link

Other Sources:

  • The Election Commission - Link

Additional reading

  • See the latest updates on Thailand on iKNOW Politics
  • "Palladino, L. (2020)"Exploring Barriers to Women's Political Representation in Thailand." Rice University: https://doi.org/10.25611/ytvt-b171."
  • Choi, N. (2019) Women’s political pathways in Southeast Asia, International Feminist Journal of Politics,21:2, 224-248, DOI: 10.1080/14616742.2018.1523683
  • Thailand Government, Public Relations Department, Elected Women in National Politics’,

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