The European Parliament is the most equal parliament in the bloc, with around 40% women MEPs in 2024, compared to almost 16% in 1979. Still, EU lawmakers can’t claim parental leave, can’t vote remotely, and can’t appoint a temporary replacement. “If we want a gender-balanced system where fathers, not just mothers, can combine childcare and political activity, we need to recognise the right to a family life,” Raquel García Hermida-van der Walle, candidate for the EU elections in The Netherlands for D66 (Renew Europe), told Euronews. Current electoral laws and the European Parliament’s internal …