Beyond Quotas: Strategies to Promote Gender Equality in Elected Office

Gender equality in elected office has become a commitment of national governments and international organizations around the globe. To date, much of the discussion has revolved around electoral gender quotas – policies that set aside seats in political assemblies for women or require that political parties nominate a certain percentage of female candidates. Focusing exclusively on quotas, however, obscures the broader range of efforts around the world to bring more women into political office. This article surveys non-quota strategies used globally, developing an analytic framework for theorizing potential interventions into candidate selection and election processes. Whether used in conjunction with, or as an alternative to, quotas, the diversity of these measures points to a wide array of creative solutions, engaging a variety of actors, which might be pursued to enhance women's political representation. Future research should focus on evaluating the effects of these policies, both alongside and separately from quota policies.