A referendum on the introduction of
women's suffrage
Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...
in national elections was held in
Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarch ...
on 1 July 1984.
[ Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p1174 ] Following the introduction of female suffrage in neighbouring
Switzerland at the federal level after a
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
in 1971 (although women had had the right to vote in many cantons and municipalities before this), Liechtenstein had been the only remaining European country to deny women the right to vote.
[LIECHTENSTEIN: Keeping Up with Kuwait]
Time, 15 March 1971 Referendums had been held in
1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* Janu ...
,
1971 and
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: ...
(the latter two limited to men), but on each occasion men had rejected its introduction, despite the support of newspapers and both major political parties.
[ Nevertheless, some ]municipalities
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
had since introduced female suffrage at a local level, starting with Vaduz
Vaduz ( or , High Alemannic pronunciation: [])Hans Stricker, Toni Banzer, Herbert Hilbe: ''Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Die Orts- und Flurnamen des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.'' Band 2: ''Die Namen der Gemeinden Triesenberg, Vaduz, Schaan.'' Hrsg. ...
in 1976, and women had been elected to the local councils of Vaduz and Gamprin
Gamprin is a municipality of Liechtenstein, on the Rhine on the border with the municipality of Sennwald, in Switzerland. It had 1,690 inhabitants in 2019. The municipality contains the village of Bendern and scattered hamlets and the Liechtenstei ...
in 1983.[Beattie, ]
Liechtenstein: a modern history
p. 147
This referendum was also limited to male voters, and again both main parties had argued for its introduction.[ This time the referendum produced a vote in favour of the change, although only by the narrow margin of 119 votes, with 2,370 in favour and 2,251 against. Support was greater in Unterland than in Oberland.][ Voter turnout was 86.19%.][
Following the referendum, amendments were made to the ]constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these princ ...
to grant women the right to vote in national elections, although they did not gain the right to vote in local elections in three municipalities until 1986. The first national elections in which women could vote took place in 1986, and saw Emma Eigenmann
Emma Eigenmann-Schädler (born 30 October 1930) is a Liechtensteiner former politician and businesswoman. In 1986 she was the first woman elected to be elected to the Landtag, remaining a member until 1993.
Biography
Eigenmann was born Emma Sch ...
elected to the Landtag
A Landtag (State Diet) is generally the legislative assembly or parliament of a federated state or other subnational self-governing entity in German-speaking nations. It is usually a unicameral assembly exercising legislative competence in non ...
on the Progressive Citizens' Party
The Progressive Citizens' Party in Liechtenstein (german: Fortschrittliche Bürgerpartei in Liechtenstein, FBP) is a national-conservative political party in Liechtenstein. The FBP is one of the two major political parties in Liechtenstein, a ...
(FBP) list, becoming the first female member of the Landtag. In 1993 Cornelia Gassner Cornelia Gassner (1958-2016), was a Liechtensteiner politician. She served as government minister of Building and Transport in 1993-1997. She was the first woman minister in Liechtenstein, where women's suffrage had not been introduced until 1984. R ...
of the FBP became the country's first female cabinet member.[Beattie, ]
Liechtenstein: a modern history
p. 148
Results
See also
*Women's suffrage in Liechtenstein
Women's suffrage in Liechtenstein was introduced on , after the 1984 Liechtenstein women's suffrage referendum.Thomas Ernst Wanger: Vom Frauenstudium zum Frauenwahlrecht in der Schweiz und in Liechtenstein. In: Internationaler Verein für Geschi ...
References
{{Feminism
Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarch ...
1984 in Liechtenstein
Referendums in Liechtenstein
Women's suffrage in Liechtenstein
Suffrage referendums
July 1984 events in Europe
1984 in women's history