Abstract

Political and cultural change as well as the introduction of voluntary party quotas in most political parties in the 1980s and 1990s led to a substantial increase in the number of female members of the Bundestag. The decline in 2017 was in part the result of the ascent of the populist right-wing Alternative for Germany, the party with the lowest number of female members of parliament.

The Proportion of Women in the Bundestag (2017)

Source

Until 1983 the share of women in the German Bundestag was below 10 per cent. Since then it has risen steadily and in 2002 and 2009 it reached its high to date with 32.8 %. However, in 2017 the share of women fell again to 30.9 %.

Share of women in the German Bundestag 1949 to 2017

In each year at the beginning of the electoral period in percent

share of women. in percent

1949

6.8

1953

8.8

1957

9.2

1961

8.3

1965

6.9

1969

6.6

1972

5.8

1976

7.3

1980

8.5

1983

9.8

1987

15.4

1990

20.5

1994

26.2

1998

30.9

2002

32.8

2005

31.6

2009

32.8

2013

36.3

2017

30.9

Source: compilation based on Kürschners Volkshandbücher Deutscher Bundestag. Data from the Federal Election Commissioner and from the German Bundestag. Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung [Federal Agency for Civic Education] 2017.

Deputies. Women and Men. October 2017

women

men

total

CDU/CSU

49

197

246

SPD

64

89

153

AfD

10

82

92

FDP

19

61

80

Die Linke

37

32

69

Bündnis 90/Die Grünen

39

28

67

Independent

1

1

2

Bundestag overall

219

490

709

Source: “Abgeordnete. Frauen und Männer.” Deutscher Bundestag Available online: https://www.bundestag.de/abgeordnete/biografien/mdb_zahlen_19/frauen_maenner/529508

Translation: Thomas Dunlap