Får vi også vere med? Om kvinner i norsk lokalpolitikk

According to our analysis we are moving slowly in the right direction on the way to gender balance in local politics. During the last 20-30 years we have witnessed a positive development. The representation of women has in particular increased among local councillors in general. On the other hand women are more or less absent as top candidates and as mayors. The degree of female underrepresentation varies in Norwegian municipalities. We have identified two types of municipalities; those with an overall high level of female local politicians and those with an overall low level. Furthermore, in municipalities with a high level of female participation women are more often nominated at the top of their list, they are more likely to get elected as mayors and they more often run for reelection. Further attempts to achieve gender balance in local politics must take into consideration the municipalities as the context where the participation takes place, the political parties as the gatekeepers to local government, and women themselves in respect to motivation to participate in local politics. Among these, political parties have a vital role. Women’s representation is positively correlated to representation of socialist parties in the local assembly. This indicates that certain parties enhance, whereas other parties hamper women’s participation in local politics. All in all women are welcomed in local politics, but still they are placed second compared to their male colleagues. Nevertheless, women are important to the political parties as candidates. The appeal of a list consisting of a balanced mix between female and male candidates is regarded as superior to a list where one gender is highly underrepresented