In more than 700 cities across the country, no woman was elected councilor

In this year’s municipal elections, 775 Brazilian municipalities did not elect any woman to the City Council, according to data from the Superior Electoral Court (TSE). This means that approximately 1 in every 7 municipalities will not have female representation in the local legislature. The number, although still significant, decreased compared to the last election, in 2020, when 929 cities were left without any female councilors.

This year, the state of Minas Gerais led the election of councilors, with 1,300 women chosen at the polls. Next comes São Paulo, with 1,200. Roraima had the smallest number of representatives, electing only 40 women to municipal legislatures. Amapá comes close behind, with 41 elected officials, according to the TSE.

The percentage of women elected to the Municipal Chambers in Brazil had a timid increase in this election. In 2020, 83.87% of seats were occupied by men and 16.13% by women. Now, men represent 81.76% of councilors, while female participation has risen to 18.24%.

In the capitals, the increase was a little more significant. The proportion of female councilors went from 17% in the last election to 21% this year. Five cities reached or surpassed the mark of 30% of seats occupied by women: São Paulo (36%), Curitiba (32%), Porto Alegre (31%), Boa Vista (30%) and Cuiabá (30%).

The most significant increase in the number of women elected councilors occurred in Cuiabá, where female representation jumped from 8% to 30% of seats. São Paulo, the city with the largest electoral college in the country, will also have the highest proportion of female councilors among the capitals, with 36% of seats occupied by women.

Among the five most voted names in the capital of São Paulo, two are women: Ana Carolina Oliveira (Podemos), mother of Isabella Nardoni, won almost 130 thousand votes and was the second most voted, while Amanda Paschoal (PSOL), with 108 thousand votes , was in fifth position. The psolista had federal deputy Erika Hilton (PSOL) as an electoral campaigner.

Other capitals also had councilors leading the voting ranking for the Legislature. The PL, party of former president Jair Bolsonaro, stood out with two women among the most voted: Samantha Iris, in Cuiabá, and Priscila Costa, in Fortaleza. In Belém, Silvane (MDB) also secured her place in the City Council as the most voted councilor, as did PT member Karla Coser, in Vitória.

“Considering both the percentage of women in the country, which is more than half of the population, and the potential in relation to candidacies, we realize that this increase is not yet significant”, assesses Tauá Pires, Director of Advocacy at Instituto Alziras, a non-profit organization profitable organization that works to expand and strengthen the participation of women in Brazilian politics. “To give an example, here at e

state of São Paulo, although we have had this expansion, we still have 78 cities without any female councilors.”

The expert also assesses the result of the election for municipal Executives as unpromising. Previously, 12.07% of city halls were headed by women; after the first round, this number rose to 13.23%. Tauá emphasizes that the outcome of the second round will be important to assess progress in the diversity agenda in this election, as there are seven women running for mayor of capitals.

The cities with candidates in the second round are Curitiba, Porto Alegre, Aracaju, Natal, Campo Grande, Palmas and Porto Velho. Campo Grande stands out for being the only one with two women competing directly. In the last election, only Cinthia Ribeiro, in Palmas (TO), and Adriana Lopes, in Campo Grande (MS), were elected.