EV MISSION

Changing the Face of Canadian Politics

Who is Equal Voice?

We are a group of women and men who are deeply
concerned about Canadian politics and have formed a multi-partisan, non-profit organization devoted to the still-bold idea that more women must be elected to every level of
government in Canada.

Our mission is to promote the election of more women to all levels of Government and ultimately, change the face of Canadian politics.

Why do we need gender balanced governments?

While women have made gains over the past twenty years, progress has been slow. The numbers of women elected to the House of Commons has hovered around the 20% mark since 1993.
Women are 52% of Canada's population and make up an average of 21% of Canada's municipal councils, provincial legislatures and the House of Commons.
Canada's international ranking on women's political representation, has fallen to 47th in the world. Despite enjoying economic prosperity and political stability, Canada now has fewer women elected than most of Europe, parts of Africa, and Australia (see the Interparliamentary Union's web site for a full listing.)
Polling data consistently demonstrates women care about different issues. The United Nations has emphasized that equality in decision-making is essential to the empowerment of women, noting a critical mass is needed before legislatures produce public policy representing women's concerns.
Equal Voice aims to increase awareness about the need for gender balanced government.

Democracy should be a genuine partnership between men and women:

How can a democracy be deemed legitimate if it fails to represent half its population?
Canadians value fairness and equality. We have decided that democracy should be genuine partnership of men and women. To this end, we adopted a Charter of Rights and Freedoms that reinforces this belief by guaranteeing equality for women. Despite these values, women still encounter barriers to public office.

Canada has made international commitments to change:

Now we need action from our political parties and government.
At the 1995 United Nations World Conference on Women, Canada committed to "take measures to ensure women's equal access to and full participation in power structures and decision-making" and to "increase women's capacity to participate in decision-making and leadership."

Why is Canada so far behind?

Canada's political parties and governments need to adopt action plans to break down barriers for women in politics. Political will and commitment on the part of leaders and their political parties is a necessary ingredient for success.
Political parties need to be proactive recruiting and supporting women candidates to run in winnable ridings; all parties need to make the decision on how to address this inequality; and all parties have to identify processes that work for them.
To level the playing field, many parliaments and political parties are implementing well funded national action plans to reduce the barriers by: recruiting and training women candidates, offering family friendly work environments, introducing proportional representation, electoral financing reforms, setting targets, constitutional reforms, and public awareness campaigns.
We're convinced changes promoting women in politics will improve the opportunities of other underrepresented Canadians and create a healthier, more democratic political system.