ISLAMABAD: Women cast 24.4 million of the 58.9 million votes cast in the general elections of 2024, a significant rise in the proportion of female voters in the overall number of votes cast. This represented a 2.7-meter rise, almost twice as much as the 1.6-meter gain in male votes.
The percentage of female voters in National Assembly seats increased from 39.4 percent in 2018 to 41.4 percent in 2024, according to a report titled Women in Elections, which was released at an event hosted by the Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen) on Tuesday. In provincial assemblies, the proportion of female voters increased from 40 percent to 41.4 percent.
The gender disparity in turnout decreased from 10 percentage points in 2018 to 9 points in 2024, according to the research, even though both male and female voter turnout declined throughout regions, with the exception of Islamabad.
The gender gap decreased from 12.8 percent in 2013 to 7.7 percent in 2024 as a result of a notable improvement in female voter registration during the past ten years. Female voter registration has increased by 27 percent over the past five years, while male voter registration has increased by 17 percent. This represents a 10 percentage point difference.
In 2024, there were 902 female candidates, up from 465 in 2018.
In 2024, the overall gender disparity in voting fell below 10 million, to 9.9 million, for the first time since the 2013 general election. Women between the ages of 18 and 35 accounted for 74% of this disparity, suggesting under-registration in these age groups.
Punjab was responsible for 51 percent of the total gender disparity in absolute terms, but Balochistan had the biggest proportionate gap at 12 percent, followed by Islamabad (5 percent), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (9 percent), Sindh (8 percent), and Punjab (7 percent).
From 571 in 2018 (172 national and 398 provincial seats) to 140 in 2024 (38 national and 102 provincial constituencies), the number of constituencies with a gender disparity more than 10 percent has drastically decreased.
Punjab demonstrated steady progress in closing the deficit, going from 214 constituencies in 2013 with a gender difference of more than 10 percent to just 17 in 2024. Balochistan, on the other hand, has made less progress; from 45 in 2018 to 30 in 2024, there were fewer constituencies with a disparity of more than 10 percent.
Additionally, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa demonstrated progress, as seen by the decline in constituencies with notable gender discrepancies from 105 in 2018 to 24 in 2024. Similar trends were seen in Sindh, where the number of such constituencies decreased from 66 in 2018 to 31 in 2024.
Women running for office
Additionally, there was a notable increase in female political participation. Compared to 2018, there were twice as many female candidates in the 2024 elections, with 902 women running for 509 of the 859 seats in the national and provincial assemblies. Compared to the 465 female candidates running for 339 seats in 2018, this was a significant increase.
Additionally, the percentage of female candidates that received votes in national and provincial assemblies grew from 2.7% in 2013 to 4.3% in 2024. An increase in independent female candidates
contributed to this trend, as more women than in prior elections ran for office and won.
Problems continue
The report pointed out areas where progress is still slow in spite of these achievements. Women are still underrepresented in politics as lawmakers, voters, and leaders. When distributing election tickets, political parties still gave preference to male candidates, which limited the representation of women.
Furthermore, the research pinpointed polling places with abnormally low female participation. Women either did not cast a ballot or received fewer than 10 votes in 230 voting places spread over 51 National Assembly constituencies.
The Elections Act of 2017’s initiatives have been instrumental in reducing the gender gap and raising the number of female voters. Nonetheless, there are still issues, especially with guaranteeing equitable representation and involvement in the democratic process.
