Gender inequality in Austrian political leadership is again moving in the opposite direction. Due to several government reshuffles, the proportion of women in the federal government has fallen – contrary to the European trend – from 46.7 to 35.7 percent. This trend therefore contradicts the European one. This was reported by the Institute for Issues of Parliamentarianism and Democracy on Monday.
AUSTRIA. “2022 was not a jubilee year for women in Austrian high politics”, summarizes the institute. The proportion of women in the Austrian federal government is currently 35.7%, slightly above the EU average of 32.3%. By comparison, Spain (60.9 percent), Finland (57.9 percent), Belgium (53.3 percent) and France and the Netherlands, each at 50 percent, have a higher proportion of women in their governments. . If we add the three state secretaries and one state secretary, eight of the 18 members of the Austrian federal government are women, which corresponds to a proportion of 44.4 percent.
The number of women on the Austrian National Council also dropped slightly from 76 to 74, which corresponds to a participation of 40.4 percent. However, Austria is well above the EU average of 32.4 percent. In the Federal Council, the number of women increased by one person each to 26 and in state parliaments to 162, which also represents a marginal increase. The number of Austrian representatives in the European Parliament, on the other hand, has not changed and is still eight out of 19.
More mayors and councilors
The number of female mayors increased by 0.9 percent, with an increase (1.4 percent) also recorded among female councillors. That puts Austria well below the EU average of 34.5% for female councilors and 17.7% for female mayors. Overall, women make up around 24% of all Austrian local politicians.
The number of women in state governments has dropped slightly. As of February 2023, 28 out of a total of 73 members (including the five non-executive councilors in Vienna) are women, compared to 29 the year before. The proportion of women is 39.7% and is still above the EU average of 36.1 percent. Styria has the highest proportion of women in provincial governments at 50%, while Upper Austria has the lowest at 22.2%. In state parliaments, the number of women did not change significantly (36.6%).
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