The election of Independent Midlands-North-West candidate Marian Harkin to the European Parliament means Ireland now has a greater number of female TDs and MEPs than ever before.
Six women and five men were elected to the Parliament across the three Irish constituencies.
By-election winners Gabrielle McFadden, a new Fine Gael TD for Longford-Westmeath, and Ruth Coppinger, a new Socialist Party Deputy for Dublin West, also took up their Dáil seats this week.
195 women were elected to local government last Friday, while six seats remain to be allocated.
The National Women’s Council of Ireland (NWCI) has welcomed the increase in the number of elected female representatives.
They’re calling on political parties to continue showing their commitment to getting more women involved in politics.
Women in Politics and Decision Making Officer at NWCI, Louise Glennon said: “This is a clear sign that the impending gender quotas legislation is having a positive impact. Women deserve and need to be at the table where decisions that affect all our lives are made.
“The most recent elections have proven a proud moment for all the women who put themselves forward, whether they were elected or not... the increased visibility of women throughout this campaign will encourage more women to stand in the General Elections”, she added.
The election of Ruth Coppinger and Gabrielle McFadden brings to 27 the total number of women in Dáil Éireann.
At present, Fine Gael have ten sitting female Dáil members, namely Catherine Byrne (Dublin South-Central), Áine Collins (Cork North-West), Marcella Corcoran-Kennedy (Laois/Offaly), Regina Doherty (Meath East), Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid-West), Heather Humphreys (Cavan/Monaghan), Helen McEntee (Meath East), Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South), Mary Mitchell O’Connor (Dún Laoghaire) and Michelle Mulherin (Mayo).
The Labour Party have seven female deputies, namely Joan Burton (Dublin West), Ciara Conway (Waterford), Anne Ferris (Wicklow), Kathleen Lynch (Cork North-Central), Jan O’Sullivan (Limerick City), Ann Phelan (Carlow/Kilkenny) and Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid-West).
There are six female independent members of Dáil Éireann, namely Joan Collins (Dublin South-Central), Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South-East), Clare Daly (Dublin North), Catherine Murphy (Kildare North), Maureen O’Sullivan (Dublin Central), Róisín Shortall (Dublin North-West)
Sinn Féin is represented by Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central) and Sandra McLellan (Cork East).
Ruth Coppinger has become The Socialist Party’s Dáil Deputy, while there are currently no sitting female Fianna Fáil members in Dáil Éireann.
Women currently hold 20.5% of the 949 total local election seats across the country, a 3.5% minimum increase on the number of outgoing female local authority representatives.
An urban / rural divide continues, however. Dublin City Council has just exceeded the 30% quota, with 44 men and 19 women, while in Clare just three women were elected to sit alongside 29 men.
According to NWCI Director Orla O’Connor: “We need to see more women and men working towards women’s equality and this can only happen if there are more women at the decision making table.
“We are being told that Ireland is on the road to recovery, yet this is not true for many women. Men leave the Live Register four times faster than women. Employment for women under 35 is falling, even as overall employment improves.
“NWCI looks forward to working with all those newly-elected politicians to advance the issues that will make a real difference to women’s lives and make society better for both women and men", she said.
Constance Markievicz was the first woman elected to Dáil Eireann in 1919 and was the only female Cabinet minister in Irish history until 1979.
Germany's female Chancellor Angela Merkel has meanwhile topped Forbes magazine's list of the world's most powerful women for the fourth consecutive year.
Hillary Clinton, former first lady and possible future US presidential contender, was listed at number six.
