Women’s participation in public life Considerations in the context of the parliamentary elections in Poland on October 15, 2023

Abstract

This article deals with the issue of women’s participation in public life, focusing in particular on the parliamentary elections that took place in 2023 in Poland. Although more than 100 years have passed since women gained electoral rights, they are still underrepresented in public authorities. Many factors are responsible for these inequalities, both political and social. Until a certain point, women were seen only in the category of mothers, taking care of the home, and not as people who could realistically participate in the exercise of public power. The parliamentary elections in 2023 in this respect turned out to be groundbreaking, especially in the context of social factors determining the election campaign. We could observe an unusual mobilization among women, which translated into their high attendance. Although the number of female representatives in both the Sejm and the Senate is still not comparable with the participation of men in these bodies, we also notice their systematic growth in this aspect.