New Zealand vs North America: Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments
New Zealand
45.5%
in 2025
North America
29.5%
in 2025
New Zealand rank
12th
North America rank
11th
Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments over time
- New Zealand
- North America
How they compare
New Zealand currently reports 45.5% against 29.5% in North America, a difference of 16.0%.
That makes New Zealand's figure about 1.5 times North America's.
Across all 28 years both countries report, New Zealand has been ahead every year.
New Zealand ranks 12th and North America ranks 11th of 193 countries.
New Zealand has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | New Zealand | North America | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 29.2% | 15.7% | 13.5% | New Zealand |
| 2000s | 31.3% | 17.8% | 13.5% | New Zealand |
| 2010s | 34.0% | 22.0% | 12.0% | New Zealand |
| 2020s | 47.2% | 29.2% | 18.0% | New Zealand |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments, New Zealand or North America?
- New Zealand, at 45.5% against 29.5% in North America as of 2025.
- What is the difference in proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments between New Zealand and North America?
- 16.0%, with New Zealand ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for New Zealand and North America?
- 28 years are reported by both, from 1997 to 2025.
- How do New Zealand and North America rank globally for proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments?
- New Zealand ranks 12th and North America ranks 11th of 193 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), published as Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (%). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Women in parliaments are the percentage of parliamentary seats in a single or lower chamber held by women.