2019 seemed to be a difficult year for women in Israeli politics. Prominent female politicians, including some former heads of parties, like Tzipi Livni, Shelly Yachimovich and Stav Shafir, left the Knesset under various circumstances, while others like Miri Regev and Ayelet Shaked were marginalized and pushed into the background.
Women held 25% of all seats in the 20th Knesset. Today, the percentage stands at 17%, with no change in sight.
Dr. Osnat Akirav and Dr. Reut Itzkovitch-Malka will discuss the worrisome decrease in women in the Knesset and its significance on Israeli society, the possible effect on voter turnout in the coming elections and what can be done in order to create change.
Dr. Osnat Akirav heads the Research Department of Political Science at the Western Galilee College. Her research focuses on legislative studies and she specializes in the advancement of women in politics, Israeli political system, gender and politics, minorities and politics, candidate selection methods, local government and research methods. Dr. Akirav is a member of WePower.
Dr. Reut Itzkovitch-Malka is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology, Political Science and Communication at the Open University of Israel. Her research fields include Israeli politics, gender and politics (women’s descriptive and substantive representation, the adoption of gender quotas for women, feminist ideology and the gender gap in voting), political representation, legislative studies, electoral systems and party politics.
