Building Readiness for Inclusive and Accessible Electoral Processes: Women’s Active and Passive Electoral Rights

Ukraine’s future electoral processes will take place in a fundamentally transformed social and demographic landscape shaped by war, displacement, migration, military service, and other profound societal changes. These developments have created new challenges for ensuring that all citizens can exercise their electoral rights on an equal basis, both as voters and as candidates.

In this context, building readiness for inclusive and accessible electoral processes is essential to ensuring that future elections reflect the diversity of Ukrainian society and uphold democratic participation for all.

The first Open Dialogue in the series Building Readiness for Inclusive and Accessible Electoral Processes will focus on women’s active and passive electoral rights and explore practical measures to support women’s equal and effective participation in future elections.

The hybrid event will be held on 30 September 2026 from 9:30 to 15:00 (Kyiv time) in Ukrainian and English, with simultaneous interpretation.

Organized by the Central Election Commission of Ukraine and International IDEA in partnership with the Government of Canada, the event will bring together representatives of electoral institutions, Parliament, political parties, civil society organizations, international partners and experts to discuss political, legal, institutional and practical barriers affecting women’s participation in electoral processes.

The dialogue will examine how war-related changes have affected opportunities for political participation and representation, particularly for women who face multiple and intersecting barriers. Particular attention will be given to the experiences of internally displaced women, refugee and returnee women, women with disabilities, women from military and veteran families, young women, rural women, caregivers and women from minority communities.

Participants will also discuss the role of political parties, electoral institutions, lawmakers, media and civil society in creating a more enabling environment for diverse political leadership.

Objective

The event aims to facilitate dialogue on measures needed to ensure that all Ukrainian citizens, regardless of gender or belonging to underrepresented groups, can exercise their rights to vote and stand for election.

Discussions will contribute to the development of practical recommendations on legislative, institutional and administrative measures that can strengthen readiness for future inclusive electoral processes and support equal political participation.

Participants

Key participants will include representatives of:

• the Central Election Commission of Ukraine;
• Parliament;
• political parties;
• civil society organizations working on women’s rights and inclusive participation;
• international organizations and development partners;
• researchers and practitioners working in the fields of democracy, elections and governance.

The dialogue forms part of a broader series of discussions on inclusive political participation and will contribute to identifying priority areas for future cooperation and policy development aimed at strengthening the inclusiveness and accessibility of electoral processes in Ukraine.

Registration

Participation is subject to prior registration. Due to limited capacity, particularly for in-person participation, participants are encouraged to register as early as possible.

Confirmation of in-person participation and venue details will be shared with registered participants subject to availability.