This key issues paper examines the number and proportion of women in the NSW Legislative Council following the March 2019 State Election.
It complements the Women in Parliament: NSW Legislative Assembly section of Key Issues for the 57th Parliament.
Eight of the 21 Members of the Legislative Council (MLCs) elected in March 2019 were women, bringing the total number of female MLCs to 12 (28.6%). In comparison to the previous Parliament (23.8%), the representation of women in the Legislative Council has improved. However, the current proportion of female MLCs is actually less than it was 16 years ago (13 of the 42 MLCs (31%) were women following the 2003 election).
