SHARECountry Data
Peru (Republic of Peru) has a Unicameral parliament with legislated quotas for the single/lower house and at the sub-national level. 50 of 129 (39%) seats in the Congreso de la República / Congress of the Republic are held by women.
At a glance
Structure of Parliament: Unicameral
Are there legislated quotas...
- For the Single/Lower House? Yes
- For the Sub-National Level? Yes
Are there voluntary quotas...
- Adopted by political parties? No
Is there additional information?...
- Yes
Last updated: Jan 23, 2023
Single/Lower House
Congreso de la República / Congress of the Republic
| Total seats | 129 |
| Total Women | 50 |
| % Women | 39% |
| 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 | Constitution | |
| Electoral law | Article 116 of Law 26859 establishes that the candidates' lists for the seats in the Congress must contain at least 40% of men or women candidates They should be organized following the order: 1 woman, 1 man. The resulting list will be organized following the result and respecting the 40% quota. The quota will be increasing to 45% for the Elections in 2026 and 50% for the Elections in 2031. |
|
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law | If the candidate lists do not abide by the gender quota requirements, they shall not be admitted by the electoral authority (Electoral law, Article 119). |
| Rank order/placement rules | Yes | Article 116 of the Electoral Law 26859 establishes that the establishment of the lists must follow the order: 1 woman, 1 man. The resulting list will be organized following the result and respecting the 40% quota. |
| Is the provision of direct public funding to political parties related to gender equality among candidates? | No | See more in International IDEA's Political Finance database |
| Are there provisions for other financial advantages to encourage gender equality in political parties? | No | 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 | Constitution | |
| Electoral law | The candidate lists for the seats in municipal and regional councils must include at least 30% women candidates. If after the application of the 30% quota the result is a number containing a fraction, it is raised to the next higher integer. For example, in a candidate list with 5 names at least 2 must be women’s names (Law No. 26864 regulating Municipal Elections, Article 10 (3), Law No. 27683 regulating Regional Elections, Article 12 (1) and Law No. 28094 regulating Political Parties, Article 26). | |
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance | Electoral law | If a candidate list does not comply with the gender quota the political party will have 2 business days to correct the list and submit it again to the commission. If after that period the candidate list still fails to meet the gender quota, the list will not be accepted (Municipal Electoral law, Article 10 (2)). |
| Rank order/placement rules | Electoral law | None |
Additional Information
Gender quotas have been incorporated in Peru’s national electoral legislation since 1997. The 2000 national election was conducted with one nation-wide constituency, and the 25% quota provision was almost met (21.7% of candidates elected were women, up from 10.8% in the 1995 election). However, in the 2001 national election, in which the country was divided into electoral districts, the number of women elected dropped to 18.3%. In the 2006 election women's representation increased, and the new quota provision of 30% was almost met.
In 2019, a new legislation has established that, for the General Elections of 2021, the quota will be increased to 40%, increasing a 5% for the following elections until parity will be reached: in 2026 (45%) and in 2031 (50%).
Sources
LEGAL SOURCES:
- Constitution of Peru (rev. 2018) (Spanish version)
- Constitution of Peru (rev. 2009)(English version)
- Ley no 26859, Ley Orgánica de Elecciones, 2020 (Spanish version)
- Ley no 28094, Ley de Partidos Políticos, 2003 (Law no. 28094 of 2003 on Political Parties) (Spanish version)
- Ley no 27683, Ley de Elecciones Regionales, 2002 (Law no. 27683 of 2002 on Regional Elections) (Spanish version)
- Ley no 26864, Ley de Elecciones Municipales (Law no. 26864 on municipal elections) (Spanish version)
OTHER SOURCES:
- Llanos, B (2019): “Surcando olas y contra-olas. Una mirada paritaria a los derechos políticos de las mujeres en América Latina”. Atenea, International IDEA, ONU Mujeres, UNDP.
- Llanos, B. and Nina, J (2015):"Mecanismo de aceleración de la participación política de las mujeres en América Latina y el Caribe. La paridad que no llega: Avances y Desafíos de la Participación Política de las Mujeres Peruanas". Perú: Atenea, International IDEA, ONU Mujeres and UNDP.
- La Ley (2019/08/27): ¡Ya es oficial! Establecen la paridad de género en las elecciones del Congreso
Additional reading
- See the latest updates on Peru on iKNOW Politics
- Gender Equality Observatory for Latin America and the Caribbean: Peru (Official Website)
- Schmidt, G & Araújo, C. 2004. The Devil’s in the Details: Open List Voting and Gender Quotas in Brazil and Peru, paper presented at the XXV International Congress of Latin American Studies Association, Las Vegas, October 2004.
- Schmidt, G. 2003. ‘Unanticipated Successes: Lessons from Peru’s Experience with Gender Quotas in Majoritarian Closed List and Open List PR Systems’, in International IDEA The Implementation of Quotas: Latin American Experiences, Quota Workshop Report Series no. 2, Stockholm: International IDEA, pp. 120–33.
- Schmidt, G. 2003b. Las Mujeres y el Presidente: Fujimori y La Equidad de Gnero? Lima: Manuela Ramos.
- Schmidt, G. 2003a. Cuotas efectivas, Magnitud Relativa del Partido y el xito de las Candidatas Mujeres: Una Evaluacin Comparativa de las Elecciones Municipales Peruanas. Lima: Manuela Ramos.
- Htun, Mala N. 2002. ‘Mujeres y poder político en Latinoamérica,’ in International IDEA, Mujeres en el Parlamento. Más allá de los números, Stockholm: International IDEA, pp. 19-44.
- Htun, M. N. & Jones, M. P. 2002. ‘Engendering the Right to Participate in Decision-Making: Electoral Quotas and Women's Leadership in Latin America.’ Nikki Craske and Maxine Molyneux(ed.) Gender and the Politics of Rights and Democracy in Latin America. New York: Palgrave. pp. 32-56.
- Peschard, J. 2002. El sistema de cuotas en América Latina. Panorama general, in International IDEA. Mujeres en el Parlamento. Más allá de los números. Stockholm: International IDEA, pp. 173-186.
- Women's Leadership Conference of the Americas. 2001. Women and Power in the Americas: A Report Card. Washington: Women's Leadership Conference of the Americas.
- Jimenez Polanco, J. 2001. La représentation politique des femmes en Amérique Latine: une analyse comparée (Women's political representation in Latin America: a comparative analysis). Bérengère Marques-Pereira and Patricio Nolasco (ed.) La représentation politique des femmes en Amérique Latine(Women's political representation in Latin America). Brussels: L'Harmattan. pp. 27-81.
- Lama, A. 2001. Politics-Peru: Efforts to Elect More Women Founder. Interpress Service, September 13.
- United States Agency for International Development. 2000. The USAID Commitment. Report.
- Blondet, C. 1999. Las mujeres y la política en la década de Fujimori. Working Paper no. 109. Instituto de Estudios Peruanos.
- Blondet, C. 1998. El poder político en la mira de las mujeres. In Poder politico con perfume de mujer. Las cuotas en el Perú. Lima: Movimiento Manuela Ramos/ Instituto de Estudios Peruanos.
- Villaneuva, V., & Palomino, R. 1998. Perú: Acceso de la mujer al poder y a instancias de toma de decisiones. Silvia Vega Ugalde (ed.). Acceso de las mujeres a la toma de decisiones en los países andinos. Quito: Coalición Política de Mujeres Andinas. pp. 79-107.
- Poder político con perfume de mujer: Las cuotas en el Perú(Political power with the scent of a woman: Quotas in Peru). 1998. Lima: Movimiento Manuela Ramos and Instituto de Estudios Peruanos.
- Htun, M. N. 1998. Women's Political Participation, Representation and Leadership in Latin America. Issue Brief, Women's Leadership Conference of the Americas.
- Hosken, F. 1998. IWRAW Report: Peru. Women's International Network (WIN News) 24, no. 4. pp. 72.
- Barrig, M. 1998. Female Leadership, Violence, and Citizenship in Peru. Jaquette, Jane and Wolchik, Sharon (eds.) Women and Democracy. Latin America and Central and Eastern Europe. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press. pp.104-124.
- Lama, A. 1997b. Peru-Women: New Quota Law Aims at Correcting Gender Imbalance. Interpress Service, June 5.
- Lama, A. 1997a. Peru-Rights: Women Gain in Political Representation. Interpress Service, November 11.
- Gutierrez, E. 1997. Women-Latam: Andean Women Flex Their Political Muscle. Interpress Service, September 23.
- Peru Parliament website, http://www.congreso.gob.pe/