See Her Elected (SHE), is calling on political parties to seize the opportunity presented by the General Election to increase female representation in local councils through the co-option process.
With all counts now completed, See Her Elected calculates that 52 county councillors throughout the country have been elected to Dáil Eireann which means that the co-option processes, used to fill council vacancies, now offers a ‘golden opportunity’ to improve gender balance at local government level.
See Her Elected’s Programme Manager, Dr Michelle Maher said that by prioritising gender equity during co-option, parties can increase the number of female councillors and provide them with the incumbency advantage needed to boost their chances in future elections.
“See Her Elected has tracked the number of county councillors elected to Dáil Eireann and our data shows that a total of 52 council seats throughout the country will be vacated as a result of this General Election. A breakdown of those figures shows that 12 Fianna Fáil councillors have been elected to the Dail, 14 Fine Gael councillors, 9 Sinn Féin, 5 Labour and 5 Social Democrats. The two parties with the lowest number of female councillors nationwide before the election were Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. These were also the two parties with the lowest number of female local election candidates. Only 21% of Fianna Fáil’s councillors are women, and 27% of Fine Gael’s councillors are women. We are especially calling on these two parties to ensure gender equity is to the fore in their co-option process so that women are co-opted into their newly vacated council seats.
“Political parties talk a good talk about supporting women in politics, but now is the time to walk the walk. The co-option process is a real and immediate opportunity to demonstrate commitment to gender equity in local government,” said Dr Maher.
Dr Maher said that while the per centage number of female TDs has not increased by any significant margin, she pointed to the fact that a record number of women had run in this year’s Local and General Elections.
“While the per centage number of female TDs is 25% after this General Election it is heartening to see that a record number of women (246) ran in the General Election which was a 52% increase on the numbers in the last General Election in 2020. Women accounted for 36% of candidates in this General Election.
“We also saw a record number of women (615) running as candidates in this year’s local elections which accounted for 32.5% of the overall number of candidates so more and more women are seeing politics as a possible career path.
“This was the first General Election where the 40% quota rule applied but that did not translate into a significant increase in the number of female TDs elected so I think we need to see a correct and honest application of this quota rule as some of the larger political parties added women to tickets as mere ‘token candidates’ or as sweepers for the preferred male candidates. Many women were added to tickets too late in the day which gave them no real chance to work on their profile or campaign. Parties need to row in behind their female candidates if they want them to have a real chance of getting elected,” said Dr Maher.
“If women, and women from differing backgrounds are not present in the grassroots membership, then party leaders need to ask why and have a recruitment plan implemented that is not mere lip-service. Leadership is required to demonstrate to the entire party membership, branch by branch, that this party means what it says about equity in political representation.
“Politics is a long game, and so is candidate development.
“Women make up 50% of the population but they still do not have equal representation at the decision-making tables. Ireland ranks 104th in the world for the number of women at national parliament level. Women are still starkly under-represented in both local and national politics in rural Ireland in particular,” said Dr Maher.
Research and analysis of the 2024 local election results from See Her Elected demonstrate a substantial electoral advantage for incumbent candidates, regardless of gender. This has significant implications for gender representation, particularly given the existing under-representation of women in local government.
- Co-option as a solution: The co-option process, used to fill council vacancies mid-term, presents an opportunity to improve gender balance. Parties can leverage co-option to appoint more women, giving them the advantage of incumbency in future elections. In the 2024 local elections, 68% of co-opted councillors who ran were successfully elected, significantly outperforming new candidates with a 19% success rate.
- Call to action: SHE emphasises that the upcoming co-options following the general and seanad elections present a golden opportunity for political parties to increase female representation in local councils. This will not only boost immediate female representation but also enhance the chances of these women in the 2029 local elections. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, the two largest parties, are urged to actively recruit and support more female candidates, utilising co-option to increase the number of women in local government.
A spreadsheet with a breakdown of the 52 County Councillors now elected to Dáil Eireann after General Election 2024 is available here:WEBSITE CLLRS WHO RAN IN GE2024 WITH RESULT
