Overview
- The Federal Statistical Office reported on 1 September 2026 that women hold 33.4% of seats in Germany’s state parliaments, a rise of 0.2 percentage points from the prior year driven mainly by the March 2026 Baden-Württemberg election.
- The long-term picture shows little change since 2008 when the Gleichstellungsatlas recorded 32.3%, which underlines a slow pace of progress toward equal representation.
- Representation varies widely by state: Bavaria is the lowest at 24.6% female deputies while Hamburg is closest to parity at 48.8%, and several eastern states also register particularly low shares.
- The figures count only those elected at the most recent ballot and exclude replacements (Nachrückende); women are slightly better represented at state level (33.4%) than in the Bundestag (32.4%) while municipal councils average 30.7% after a clearer rise since 2008.
- Media reports show large party gaps in the Bundestag, with Greens and The Left having majority female delegations and CDU/CSU and AfD far lower, a pattern that could renew calls for formal parity measures and affect how parties shape candidate lists and local policy priorities.