B.C. Legislature 1st in Canada to be majority female

The British Columbia Legislature has made history by becoming the first provincial or federal legislature in Canada to have a majority of female members. Following the 2024 election, 49 out of 93 MLAs now identify as female, making up 52.7 percent of the house.

Of these 49 women, 31 are from the B.C. NDP and 18 from the B.C. Conservatives. Advocacy organization Equal Voice confirmed this is the first time a legislative body in Canada has reached majority-female representation.

Previously, the Quebec National Assembly came closest, with women holding 46 percent of the seats after the last election. In contrast, Statistics Canada reports that female MPs make up just 31 percent of the federal House of Commons.

The achievement has been widely praised, with advocates and former politicians expressing hope that the increased representation will result in policies better reflecting the population.

"I think people are now less focused on whether a candidate is male or female and instead ask, 'Are they a good candidate?' And that’s a really positive shift," said Mary Polak, a former B.C. Liberal cabinet minister.

Polak, who served as an MLA from 2005 to 2020, acknowledged that achieving this milestone has taken a long time. In the previous legislature, women accounted for 43 percent of the MLAs.

"In past elections, even when many women were nominated by parties, they often struggled to win in the general election," Polak told Amy Bell, guest host of CBC's On The Coast. "So it’s encouraging to see this progress. It shows that years of effort toward recruitment are finally paying off."

Advocate Highlights Cultural Shift

Chi Nguyen, executive director of Equal Voice, said that having a legislature that reflects the province’s population could foster a new working culture.

"When we bring diverse opinions to the table, we often see different policy outcomes emerge," Nguyen explained.

Nguyen credited the B.C. NDP's candidate slate—made up of about 60 percent women—for helping achieve the milestone, while also commending all parties for involving more women and community representatives in the election.

"It’s important for every political party to engage women and other groups that mirror the population," she said.

Nguyen emphasized that increasing representation is crucial for strengthening public trust in democracy. "There’s still a lot of work to do, but having governments that better represent the people is a step toward rebuilding trust."