The representation of women in local government in the Republic of North Macedonia is extremely low. In the 2021 local elections, out of 81 municipalities only two (2) women were elected as mayors, which represents just 2.5% of the total number. This situation is a direct result of multiple systemic barriers.
Although political parties formally declare their commitment to gender equality in their programs, their engagement remains symbolic, without concrete measures for substantial change. A key problem is the absence of legal quotas for executive positions such as mayor, which allows parties to rarely nominate women for leading candidate positions, or to do so in municipalities where they have fewer chances of winning.
In addition, female candidates often face sexist and discriminatory speech, particularly during election campaigns. Online hate speech not only discredits women in the public sphere but also discourages them from political engagement.
This project directly addresses these challenges. Through establishing debate forums with women, monitoring the gender sensitivity of institutions (SEC, AVMS, SCPC), and analyzing the electoral process, the project will develop recommendations to overcome systemic barriers, creating a basis for stronger participation of women in local democracy.
Project objectives:
- To promote gender equality and women’s political participation at the local level through analysis, monitoring, and public advocacy for a more inclusive electoral process in the 2025 local elections.
- To identify and document the gap between women’s actual involvement in pre-election activities and their representation on electoral lists and among elected officials, as well as to foster institutional and public debate on overcoming this gap.