A Look Back at the Oxfam Study

The Feminization of Power in France: A Glass Ceiling That Remains Very Real

Eighty years after women were granted the right to vote, gender parity in positions of public power in France remains largely unachieved. The first “Women in Power Index” launched by Oxfam France reveals a stark figure: only 28 % of key positions in public and political life are held by women. So, what does this reality look like at the different levels of government?

Spotlight on France

Within the government, gender parity is improving but remains limited. While 50% of ministers are women, no woman holds a top executive position in 2025. In the presidential and ministerial offices, men continue to hold the vast majority of strategic positions, and France is still waiting for its first female president.

Despite some progress, Parliament also reflects these inequalities. Women make up 36% of the National Assembly’s members, and influential committees continue to be led by men.

Local government, for its part, is even further from gender parity: only 20.8% of mayors are women, 21.8% of department presidents are women, and 29.4% of regional presidents are women. Leadership positions in local government offices are also held by men.

The other centers of power (prefects, the diplomatic corps, high courts, public agencies, and political parties), however, remain largely male-dominated. For example, 0% of the high courts are headed by women, and only 10% of the major political parties are led by a woman.

Understanding the Causes and Consequences

To understand this low level of women’s representation, we must look to the systemic level: a system of power designed by and for men, which has resulted in a political landscape that remains governed by patriarchal norms even today. While legislation—such as the Rixain Act or the 2000 gender parity laws—has led to significant progress, it remains insufficiently binding.

The direct consequence is that we are faced with a vision of power that excludes women. This lack of role models perpetuates self-censorship, even in the private sector, and influences young women, who struggle to envision themselves in these roles.

Benefits that are, however, well established

Equality in the workplace and gender parity in positions of power are not merely matters of ethics or justice. They improve collective performance and innovation and strengthen social cohesion.

Beyond the principles of quotas, it is essential to foster a genuine culture of equality. For while gender parity is a crucial step, it is not enough on its own to build a truly egalitarian society. The challenge today is no longer simply to integrate women into unchanged power structures, but to fundamentally rethink those structures themselves: their codes, their practices, their timelines, and their representations.

The long-term goal? To foster a culture of power free from the masculine norms that have historically shaped it—one in which women are fully recognized, visible, and heard… and thus fully capable of changing the rules of the game.