International Knowledge Network of Women in Politics

11/06/2026

A troubling trend is emerging in Nigeria’s political landscape:

According to a coalition of women-led organisations, women could hold as little as 2.7% of Senate seats after the 2027 elections, following the outcomes of the 2026 party primaries. Only 3 women secured Senate tickets, and just 2 of 15 presidential candidates are women.

The issue is not a lack of qualified women—it is the persistence of structural barriers within political institutions. From exclusionary party processes to limited access to nominations and leadership opportunities, women continue to face significant obstacles to political participation.
The coalition’s recommendations are both practical and urgent:
• Support the passage of the Special Seats Bill.
• Increase women’s representation through party nominations.
• Require female deputy governorship candidates alongside male gubernatorial candidates.
• Improve transparency through gender-disaggregated electoral data.
• End exclusionary practices that disadvantage women during candidate selection.

A coalition of women-led groups and civil society organisations has warned that women’s representation in Nigeria’s Senate could decline to as low as 2.7 per cent after the 2027 general elections if urgent action isn’t taken to reverse the decline in women’s political representation followin...

11/06/2026

Bangladesh’s democratic journey highlights an important contradiction: despite decades of women serving in top leadership roles and strong female participation in the workforce, women remain significantly underrepresented in formal political decision-making.

The 2026 General Election saw only 7 women directly elected to Parliament and just 3 women appointed to the cabinet, the lowest level of female representation in decades. Meanwhile, women continue to be concentrated in reserved parliamentary seats rather than competitive electoral positions.

The challenge is not visibility, but influence. Structural barriers within political parties, socio-economic constraints, and entrenched gender norms continue to limit women’s access to power, particularly for working-class women, including those in the garment sector who drive Bangladesh’s economy.

Achieving meaningful political representation requires more than quotas. It demands inclusive party structures, transparent candidate selection, and greater investment in grassroots women leaders.

Bangladesh’s democratic trajectory reveals a persistent paradox.

10/06/2026

Meet Badriatu Turay, a passionate advocate from Sierra Leone, sharing the harsh realities women face in political spaces.

As a Quality Assurance Officer for National Election Watch and National Coordinator for the Young Women in Democracy Forum, Badriatu has witnessed firsthand the barriers that prevent women from fully participating in politics and democratic processes.

From cyberbullying and online harassment to cultural barriers and lack of financial support, many women are discouraged from stepping into leadership roles. The political environment often remains male-dominated, with societal pressure, family resistance, and even safety risks standing in the way.

💬 “If you are not strong enough, you will not survive in such a hostile environment.”

Drawing from her experience as an election observer, Badriatu highlighted how political violence, intimidation, and social media attacks affect not only women candidates but also women working to strengthen democratic institutions.
Despite these challenges, resilience, mentorship, financial independence, and strong networks are key to breaking barriers and empowering more women to lead.

When women participate, democracy becomes stronger.

04/06/2026

A worrying shift is underway in the digital information space: AI is scaling and accelerating online abuse, with women in public life disproportionately affected.

Deepfakes, manipulated audio, and synthetic videos are now being used to discredit journalists, activists, and politicians at unprecedented speed. What once required coordination and resources can now be done in seconds, and distributed widely before verification systems can respond.

Research and global reporting consistently point to several patterns:
✔️A large majority of women journalists report experiencing online violence
✔️AI-generated disinformation spreads faster than it can be fact-checked
✔️Coordinated harassment is increasingly linked to real-world safety risks and self-censorship
✔️Trust in online information is weakening as synthetic content becomes harder to distinguish from reality UNESCO
✔️Information disorder is widely identified as a growing systemic risk World Economic Forum

The impact goes beyond individual harassment. It shapes participation: what people say, what they publish, and whether they remain visible in public discourse at all.

This is no longer just a moderation or platform issue. It is an ecosystem problem spanning technology design, regulation, media integrity, and public trust. Without coordinated action across these areas, the risk is a shrinking digital public space where those most targeted are also the most likely to withdraw.

Women who enter public life, including journalists, activists and those in politics, have always understood that visibility comes at a cost.

04/06/2026

A disturbing trend is accelerating: sexual deepfakes are being weaponised to silence women in public life.

Across Europe and beyond, women in politics, journalism, and activism are being targeted with AI-generated explicit images designed to humiliate, discredit, and push them out of public debate.

Cases range from activists like Nika Kovač, to journalists such as Salomé Saqué, and politicians including Giorgia Meloni and Elly Schlein. The intent is consistent: not just harassment, but political and social silencing.
Key signals from recent research:
✔️ UN Women reports growing exposure of women in public life to deepfakes and image-based abuse
✔️ Many victims report self-censorship to avoid harassment
✔️ A significant share of victims experience severe psychological harm, including trauma and fear of public participation

In response, the European Union is advancing stricter regulation, including moves to ban AI systems that generate non-consensual sexual imagery and require safeguards against “nudifier” tools. This is no longer a fringe online abuse issue, it is a structural threat to participation, safety, and democratic discourse.

The core question ahead is not whether the technology can exist, but how societies ensure it cannot be used as a tool to silence voices in public life.

While victims include anonymous women and girls, those with a public profile are particularly exposed to the danger of deepfakes. Campaigners and experts say the images are designed not only to humiliate them, but to push them out of public debate.

02/06/2026

Un nuevo estudio titulado “Ser candidata en las elecciones uruguayas 2024: violencia contra las mujeres en política”, impulsado por ONU Mujeres y realizado por la Facultad de Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad de la República, expone datos preocupantes sobre la experiencia de las mujeres en la política en Uruguay.

Según los hallazgos, el 81,3% de las 128 mujeres electas al Parlamento declaró haber sufrido al menos una forma de violencia durante la campaña electoral. La violencia psicológica aparece como la más recurrente, con las redes sociales como uno de los principales espacios de agresión.

El informe también señala que la violencia política afecta con mayor intensidad a mujeres con alta visibilidad pública y a quienes promueven agendas vinculadas a derechos de las mujeres y minorías. Como consecuencia, muchas candidatas adoptan estrategias de autoprotección que limitan su participación en espacios digitales y actividades de campaña.

Estos resultados evidencian que la violencia política hacia las mujeres no es un fenómeno aislado, sino una expresión de desigualdades estructurales que atraviesan la vida social y política. En este contexto, el estudio subraya la necesidad de fortalecer marcos institucionales y culturales que garanticen una participación política plena, equitativa y libre de violencia.

El debate, presentado en el Palacio Legislativo, refuerza un desafío clave para la democracia: asegurar que la representación política refleje de forma real y segura la diversidad de la sociedad.

La investigación “Ser candidata en las elecciones uruguayas 2024: violencia contra las mujeres en política” reveló que más de ocho de cada diez candidatas electas experimentaron alguna forma de violencia durante la campaña electoral.

02/06/2026

La igualdad de género sigue siendo uno de los grandes retos —y oportunidades— para Europa.

En los últimos años, la Unión Europea ha impulsado medidas significativas para reducir las desigualdades entre mujeres y hombres: normas de transparencia salarial, legislación contra la violencia de género y la ciberviolencia, mejoras en los derechos de conciliación familiar y objetivos concretos para aumentar la presencia de mujeres en los consejos de administración de las empresas.

Estos avances reflejan una realidad: la igualdad no es únicamente una cuestión de justicia social, sino también un factor clave para la competitividad, la innovación y la calidad democrática.

Sin embargo, los desafíos persisten:

• La brecha salarial de género en la UE continúa situándose en torno al 12%.
• Una de cada tres mujeres ha sufrido violencia de género a lo largo de su vida.
• Las mujeres siguen estando infrarrepresentadas en sectores estratégicos como la tecnología, la ciencia y algunos espacios de liderazgo político y empresarial.
• La violencia digital emerge como una de las amenazas más relevantes para la participación plena de mujeres y niñas en la sociedad.

La experiencia europea demuestra que el cambio requiere una combinación de legislación efectiva, rendición de cuentas, inversión pública y transformación cultural.

La igualdad de género no debe verse como una agenda sectorial, sino como una prioridad transversal que impacta el crecimiento económico, la innovación, el bienestar social y la fortaleza de nuestras instituciones democráticas.

¿Cuál considera que es el principal desafío pendiente para alcanzar una igualdad real de oportunidades en nuestras organizaciones y sociedades?

Discriminación en el trabajo. Elecciones difíciles entre las responsabilidades profesionales y familiares. Acoso en línea. En Europa, la desigualdad es algo que muchas mujeres sufren en su día a día.

02/06/2026

La violencia política contra las mujeres no es solo un problema de equidad; es un desafío directo a la calidad de nuestras democracias.

Según datos presentados por el Consejo Nacional Electoral (CNE) y la Misión de Observación Electoral (MOE), el 78% de las mujeres que participan en procesos electorales en Colombia ha sido víctima de algún tipo de violencia política. Los ataques incluyen agresiones psicológicas, violencia digital, restricciones económicas y campañas de desprestigio que buscan limitar su participación y liderazgo.

Particularmente preocupante es el entorno digital: durante el más reciente proceso presidencial, casi la mitad de las publicaciones identificadas como violencia basada en género estuvieron dirigidas contra mujeres en política. La mayoría de estos ataques buscaba desacreditar su capacidad, cuestionar su apariencia o reducir su credibilidad pública.

La aprobación de la Ley 2453 representa un avance importante, pero su éxito dependerá de una implementación efectiva, recursos adecuados y el compromiso de las instituciones, los partidos políticos y la sociedad en su conjunto.

Garantizar que las mujeres puedan participar en la vida política libres de violencia no es únicamente una cuestión de derechos; es una condición indispensable para fortalecer la representación, la confianza ciudadana y la democracia.

¿Qué medidas consideran más efectivas para combatir la violencia política de género en entornos digitales y electorales?

El 78% de las mujeres que participan en procesos electorales en Colombia ha reportado haber sido víctima de algún tipo de violencia política, que incluye agresiones psicológicas, económicas, digitales y sexuales.

02/06/2026

The threats facing women journalists today extend far beyond the newsroom.

According to a recent UN Women report, 45% of women journalists and media professionals now self-censor on social media to avoid online abuse—a significant increase from just a few years ago. Nearly one in four report experiencing anxiety or depression linked to digital harassment.

What was once limited to hostile comments and coordinated trolling campaigns has evolved into something far more sophisticated. Generative AI is enabling deepfakes, impersonation scams, manipulated videos, and non-consensual synthetic content at unprecedented speed and scale.

The objective is often the same: silence.

Not just silencing individual journalists, but discouraging critical reporting, shrinking public debate, and undermining trust in independent media.

As technology advances, the conversation can no longer focus solely on innovation. It must also address accountability, platform responsibility, digital safety, and the protection of those who inform the public.

A free press depends on journalists being able to do their jobs without fear of harassment—online or offline.

“There are no guardrails”, says Karen Davila about popular social media platforms. “AI, like anything, can be used for good – but it can also be abused.”

02/06/2026

In many countries experiencing democratic backsliding, opposition movements face a familiar challenge: shrinking civic space, increasing polarization, and efforts to delegitimize dissent.

Turkey’s feminist movement offers a compelling example of how collective action can endure under these conditions.

For decades, feminists have built a decentralized movement capable of mobilizing across ideological, class, and regional divides. Rather than relying on a single leader or centralized structure, the movement has organized around shared experiences and concrete demands, making it both resilient and adaptable.

What makes this especially significant is that feminism in Turkey has become more than a gender equality movement. It has evolved into a model of political participation that connects personal experiences with structural realities, transforming everyday frustrations into collective action.

The lesson extends far beyond Turkey.

At a time when many opposition movements struggle to maintain momentum, the Turkish feminist movement demonstrates that durable political engagement is often built not on ideological uniformity, but on shared experiences, decentralized organizing, and a common vision for change.

A question worth considering globally: What forms of organizing are best equipped not only to survive political pressure, but to grow through it?

Over the past two decades, Turkey has undergone a profound authoritarian transformation.