Iceland Records More Women In Parliament, First Time In Europe

Iceland on Sunday became the first country in Europe to have more women than men in parliament, a day after a general election that saw the left-right coalition win a clear majority.

Of the 63 seats in the Althing parliament, 33 were won by women, or 52 per cent, projections based on the final results showed on Sunday.

No other European country has had more than 50 per cent women lawmakers, with Sweden coming closest at 47 per cent, according to data compiled by the World Bank.

Around the world, five other countries currently have parliaments where women hold at least half the seats, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union: Rwanda (61 per cent), Cuba (53 per cent), Nicaragua (51 percent) and Mexico and the United Arab Emirates (50 per cent).

Unlike some other countries, Iceland does not have legal quotas on female representation in parliament, though some parties do require a minimum number of candidates be women.

The Nordic country has long been a pioneer in gender equality and women’s rights and has topped the World Economic Forum’s ranking of most egalitarian countries for the past 12 years.

Iceland was the first country to elect a woman as president in 1980.

“I am 85, I’ve waited all my life for women to be in a majority… I am really happy,” Erdna, a Reykjavik resident.