A/79/151 moral standing. 80 Morality as a barrier can also function through social standards. For example, the social expectation that all politicians should be married with families is limiting to aspiring LGBT politicians in countries where marriage and adoption are legally inaccessible to same-sex couples. 81 23. Gender parity as a commitment and the mechanisms needed to support that result for women have been used by some States to ensure a more equitable and balanced representation of women in government and elected positions. Mexico, for example, has a gender parity system for candidates in elections. Gender parity commitments can similarly support equality and non-discrimination with respect to sexual orientation and gender identity. 82 24. Temporary special measures, such as quotas, can also be applied to ensure more equitable representation of other marginalized groups who are most at risk in exercising their rights in the context of elections, including on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. 83,84 In 2020, the Electoral Institute of Mexico City approved an agreement requiring local parties to nominate at least two LGBTQ+ candidates, while trans and non-binary persons were able to change the gender marker on their voting credentials through self-identification, without the need for a judicial or administrative process. 85 Federal quotas for marginalized groups were introduced in Mexico the following year. 86 Where temporary special measures assume a strict binary of two genders, care must be taken to ensure that gender-equalizing policies are not deployed in ways that pose practical limitations on the right to stand for office for non-binary persons. 87 In some contexts, it may be unclear whether gender quota regulations have been designed with the intent to count trans men as men and trans women as women. 88 Litigation in India concerning legal recognition of trans and third-gender identities, and formal recognition in Bangladesh, highlight current confusion and the need for clarity as a means for meaningful inclusion. 89,90 In the context of Indigeneity, provisions for muxe self-identification are pertinent in Mexico. 91 25. With regard to elected women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women) has highlighted the underrepresentation and lesser visibility of women facing intersecting forms of discrimination, including women with diverse sexual orientations and gender identities, women with disabilities, women living in rural areas, Indigenous women, migrants, young women, women of African descent and women of colour. 92 The __________________ 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 24-12964 See the case of the Ang Ladlad political party, which was initially denied registration and the opportunity to field candidates in the Philippines on moral and religious grounds. The party won the case in the Supreme Court. (Rodríguez, Building Inclusive Democracies, sect. 2). Submission by Ronald Kihali Omedo. See https://aceproject.org/ace-en/topics/ge/ge9/lgbti-groups-advocating-for-political-inclusion. See A/68/299. UNDP, “Supporting the introduction of temporary special measures (TSMs): guidance for UNDP country offices” (New York, 2023). Submission by the national human rights institution of Mexico. Rodríguez, Building Inclusive Democracies, sect. 3.2.1.1. Submission by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems , p. 1. See also United Nations Gender Quota Portal, available at https://genderquota.org/about. Submission on Costa Rica and Peru by the International Lesbian and Gay Association, pp. 3 and 6. High Court of Bombay, Anjali Guru v. State of Maharashtra, Writ Petition (Stamp) No. 104 of 2021. International Republican Institute, “Understanding the lives of Bangladesh’s LGBTI community” (Washington D.C., 2021). See Regina Waugh, “Lessons on gender equality and women’s political participation”, Election Case Law Analysis Series (October 2021). Submission by UN-Women to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women for the elaboration of general recommendation No. 40 on the equal and inclusive representation of women in decision-making systems. 11/25