Sub-goal 1: Equal distribution of power and influence

Why is it important to have equal numbers of women and men?

Equal representation is a matter of democracy and fairness. Since women and men make up half of the population each, they should also have equal access to decision-making positions in society. An unequal gender distribution can be a sign that not everyone has the same opportunities because of their gender.

Another reason for an equal distribution of women and men is that their different experiences and living conditions mean that, as groups, they differ in areas such as interests, opinions, knowledge and skills. This can bring more perspectives into the discussion and lead to better decisions.

Political representation still has a way to go

The Swedish Parliament has a relatively equal gender distribution. Following the parliamentary elections in 2018 and 2022, women accounted for 46 per cent of MPs. The Government has an equal gender distribution. The distribution between female and male members of the country's regional councils is also relatively equal. Following both the 2018 and 2022 elections, women accounted for 49 per cent and men for 51 per cent of elected representatives in regional councils.

At municipal level, however, the representation of women has stagnated at a lower level than in the Swedish Parliament and regional councils. Over the past 25 years, women have accounted for approximately 40 per cent of elected representatives. There is considerable variation between municipalities. In 97 of Sweden's municipalities, men accounted for 60 per cent or more of elected representatives following the 2022 election. The reverse situation, where women account for 60 per cent or more of the municipal council, exists in just one municipality.

Voter turnout has been relatively evenly distributed between women and men for a long time. In the 2022 parliamentary election, 85 per cent of women and 84 per cent of men voted. However, there are gender differences among both younger and older age groups. Up to the age of 45, more women than men vote, while the opposite is true among those aged 75 and over, where more men than women participate in elections.

Threats and hate directed at politicians affect women more than men

In Sweden, all laws and formal barriers that restrict people on the basis of gender have been abolished, but several other factors affect elected representatives.

Hate, threats and harassment directed at politicians are a serious and growing problem in Sweden. In 2025, one in four elected representatives reported having been subjected to threats, harassment, violence or vandalism. Abuse on social media is the most common form. Being subjected to such abuse has significant consequences, including self-censorship and politicians avoiding engagement with certain issues.

Young women, highly visible women in senior positions, and women from ethnic minority backgrounds are particularly affected. The abuse directed at women also often takes a different form from that directed at men.

Women are more likely to receive personal abuse relating to their gender, sexuality and appearance, and questioning their intellectual capacity and competence as politicians. Men are more often attacked for their political views. People who campaign on certain issues, such as gender equality and men's violence against women, are particularly exposed.

Studies show that young women are more likely to withdraw from political positions and arenas for public debate after being subjected to abuse and harassment. Hate, threats and harassment directed at politicians therefore tend to affect groups that are already underrepresented most severely.

Men are overrepresented among those who send hate, make threats against or harass politicians. The typical perpetrator is a man who is unknown to the politician and acts alone.

Men still dominate the media

Although political representation is relatively gender-equal, men dominate news coverage, particularly men aged 51–79. Fewer than one in three politicians featured in the news is a woman. The risk of hate and threats directed at female elected representatives in the media is one explanation for this imbalance.

The lower media visibility of female politicians is problematic from a democratic perspective, as women have fewer opportunities to make their political positions visible and represent their voters. There is also a risk that citizens develop a distorted picture of politics and which issues receive attention.

More men in senior positions in business

Men continue to dominate senior positions in private companies, academia and organisations. There are few women in the management of large listed companies. Nine out of ten chairs and chief executive officers of these companies are men. Men are also overrepresented among managers in industries traditionally perceived as male-dominated.

The proportion of women on corporate boards is increasing, but slowly. In 2024, women accounted for 37 per cent of board members of listed companies and 11 per cent of board chairs. Women account for a significantly larger proportion in state-owned companies. In 2025, women accounted for 50 per cent of board members and 46 per cent of board chairs in these companies.

Despite the increase in women's representation on corporate boards, women and men continue to have different roles in board work. Women are more likely to hold staff functions, while their share of senior line-management positions has not increased. Women are also underrepresented in corporate executive management teams.

Two out of three professors are men

Women and men have different conditions within higher education and universities, for example when it comes to employment, career paths and access to research funding. Men continue to dominate at the top of academia, although women's share has increased over time. Since 1997, the Government's objective has been for women to account for half of all newly recruited professors by 2030. In 2024, just under one in three professors was a woman.

Significant differences remain between academic disciplines. In 2022, the proportion of women among professors was highest in the humanities and arts and in the social sciences, while it was lowest in the natural sciences and engineering.

Young men are becoming less interested in gender equality

Surveys show that young people, and boys in particular, are less interested in gender equality today than they were a few years ago. In 2018, one in five young people considered gender equality one of the most important issues facing society. By 2024, this figure had fallen to 13 per cent.

Among boys and men aged 16–24, a large proportion question gender equality. More than half of men do not believe that women are as good political leaders as men. Attitudes towards gender equality and norms around equal representation affect whether women and men have equal power and influence in politics.

The gender gap is also reflected in which political parties women and men vote for. Research has noted a growing divide, with women tending to vote further to the left and men further to the right. This risks increasing polarisation in society and reducing understanding of different groups' living conditions.

What needs to be done to achieve gender-equal power and influence?

We highlight several areas that are important for achieving the goal of an equal distribution of power and influence:

• To prevent hate and threats from reducing women's political participation, clear employer responsibility, access to effective support systems for elected representatives who are subjected to abuse, and preventive measures are needed. Measures need to take into account that women and men are subjected to different forms of abuse.
• Maintain and develop targets for increasing the proportion of women in senior positions in society. For example, the Government's target for gender balance on the boards of state-owned companies has been successful.
• Make municipal politics more family-friendly. Women in particular report that it is difficult to combine political engagement with parenthood.
• The conditions for participating in and engaging in politics need to be gender-equal. Civil society organisations play an important role in harnessing civic engagement and giving women and men equal opportunities to participate.
• Targets for equal representation in the media should be strengthened, and gender equality should once again be reinstated as an explicit overarching perspective within public service broadcasting.