Methodology - Women and men in decision-making processes

The level of involvement of women and men in decision-making processes can be analyzed, among other things, through data on the structure of candidates and elected councillors, or deputies in different types of elections.

Elections to the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech Republic were held on 8 and 9 October 2021 on the basis of universal, equal, and direct suffrage by secret ballot, following the principle of proportional representation in the electoral regions. The way of determining the election results, the procedure of their further processing, up to the allocation of seats is governed by the Act No. 247/1995 Coll., on Elections to the Parliament of the Czech Republic, as subsequently amended. It is laid down in the Constitution of the Czech Republic that the number of deputies elected (seats) shall be 200. An annex to the Act defines 14 electoral regions, which are identical with an administrative breakdown of the Czech Republic to Regions. It was possible for Czech citizens to vote also abroad, in polling stations installed at embassies and consulates general or consular agencies of the CR. The voters were citizens of the Czech Republic who had attained at least the age of 18 years on the second day of the elections, at the latest, provided no legal impediment to the exercise of their right to vote occurred. A voter could also vote in any permanent or any special electoral ward (i.e. in the Czech Republic or abroad) upon submission of an elector’s certificate. Any voter who has reached the age of at least 21 on at least the second election day could be elected as a Member of Parliament.

Elections to regional councils were held on 2 and 3 October 2020 on the basis of universal, equal, and direct suffrage by secret ballot, following the principle of proportional representation. The elections were not held in the Capital City of Prague, the Hl. m. Praha Region, in which the function of the regional council is performed by the Prague City Assembly, elected pursuant to the Act on elections to local councils. The elections were held only in the territory of the Czech Republic and their execution was governed by the Act No. 130/2000 Coll., on Regional Council Elections, as subsequently amended. For these elections, the number of seats was laid down for each regional council with regard to the population of the region for 45, 55, or 65 councillors to be elected. The voters were citizens of the Czech Republic who attained the age of at least 18 years on the second day of the elections, at the latest, had permanent residence in the municipality within the territory of the Region, and no legal impediment to the exercise of their right to vote occurred. With a electoral card, a voter could also vote in a different electoral district than the one to which he belongs according to his place of permanent residence, but only in an electoral district falling within the territorial district of the region where the elections are announced and in whose territorial district the voter is registered for permanent residence. Any voter may be elected as a member of the regional council for whom the law has not imposed a restriction on personal freedom due to serving a prison sentence, or a restriction on the right to exercise the right to vote.

Elections to local councils were held on 23 and 24 September 2022 on the basis of universal, equal, and direct suffrage by secret ballot, following the principle of proportional representation. Execution of the elections was governed by the Act No. 491/2001 Coll., on Local Council Elections and amending certain acts, as subsequently amended. The right to vote belonged to citizens of the Czech Republic who had attained at least the age of 18 years on the second day of the elections, at the latest, and had permanent residence in the relevant municipality, provided no legal impediment to the exercise of their right to vote occurred. Under the same conditions, also a national of another country to whom an international treaty gives the right to vote (a treaty by which the Czech Republic is bound and that has been promulgated in the Collection of International Treaties) was classified as a voter. These are citizens from other EU member states with permanent or temporary residence in the relevant municipality. Voters were allowed to cast their vote only in the polling station of the electoral ward, in which they had permanent residence (in the case of foreigners from the EU, also temporary residence), a voter ID (an electoral card) is not applicable. The number of members of a local council being elected depended on the number of the population of a municipality ranging from 5 to 55, except for the Prague City Assembly, for which 65 members were being elected. Any voter for whom it was not determined by law that he or she is deprived of his or her personal liberty due to serving a term of imprisonment or that he or she is deprived of his or her legal capacity to exercise his or her right to vote could have been elected.

In the presented data on women and men, the data found in the regular elections to local councils, small towns and towns are shown, without taking into account the elections to the council of a city district or a city section of territorially subdivided statutory towns, or councils of Prague city sections.