List of female speakers of national and territorial upper houses
This list presents female speakers of national and territorial upper houses of their respective countries or territories. The upper house, often called the Senate, is the one of two chambers in a bicameral legislature. The upper house usually has less power than the lower house. In some countries, its members are appointed rather than elected by popular votes. Speaker of the upper house is the one who takes office as acting head of state in presidential republic.
National[]
Denotes incumbent speaker
- Italics denotes acting speaker and states that are either de facto (with limited to no international recognition) or defunct.
| Name | Image | Country | Legislative Body | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olga Rudel-Zeynek | 
|
 Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 December 1927 | 31 May 1928 | 182 days |
| 1 June 1932 | 30 November 1932 | 182 days | ||||
| Ingeborg Hansen | 
|
 Denmark
|
Landstinget | 16 March 1952 | 24 April 1953 | 3 years, 39 days |
| 7 October 1952 | 21 September 1953 | 349 days | ||||
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 July 1953 | 31 December 1953 | 183 days | |
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 January 1965 | 30 June 1965 | 180 days | |
| 1 July 1969 | 31 December 1969 | 183 days | ||||
| 1 January 1974 | 30 June 1974 | 180 days | ||||
| Muriel Fergusson |
|
 Canada
|
Senate | 14 December 1972 | 11 September 1974 | 1 year, 271 days |
| Doris Louise Johnson |
|
 Bahamas
|
Senate | 1973 | 1982 | 9 years, 0 days |
| Tras Honan |
|
 Ireland
|
Seanad Éireann | 13 May 1982 | 23 February 1983 | 286 days |
| 25 April 1987 | 1 November 1989 | 2 years, 190 days | ||||
| Isabel Perón | 
|
 Argentina
|
Senate | 12 October 1973 | 1 July 1974 | 262 days |
| Jeanette Rose Grant-Woodham |
|
 Jamaica
|
Senate | 21 August 1984 | 1989 | 4 years, 133 days |
|
|
 Belize
|
Senate | 21 December 1984 | 31 July 1989 | 4 years, 222 days | |
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 July 1987 | 31 December 1987 | 183 days | |
| Jane Usher |
|
Belize
|
Senate | 15 September 1989 | 1 June 1993 | 3 years, 259 days |
|
|
 Grenada
|
Senate | 1990 | 1995 | 5 years, 0 days | |
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 January 1991 | 30 June 1991 | 180 days | |
| 1 July 1995 | 31 December 1995 | 183 days | ||||
| 1 January 2000 | 30 June 2000 | 181 days | ||||
| 1 July 2004 | 31 December 2004 | 183 days | ||||
| Millicent Percival |
|
 Antigua and Barbuda
|
Senate | 1994 | 2004 | 10 years, 0 days |
| Katica Ivanišević |
|
 Croatia
|
Chamber of Counties | 23 May 1994 | 28 March 2001 | 6 years, 309 days |
| Margaret Reid |
|
 Australia
|
Senate | 20 August 1996 | 19 August 2002 | 5 years, 364 days |
| Alicja Grześkowiak | 
|
 Poland
|
Senate | 21 October 1997 | 18 October 2001 | 3 years, 362 days |
|
|
Belize
|
Senate | 12 September 1998 | July 2001 | 2 years, 292 days | |
| Libuše Benešová |
|
 Czech Republic
|
Senate | 16 December 1998 | 23 November 2000 | 1 year, 343 days |
| Esperanza Aguirre | 
|
 Spain
|
Senate | 9 February 1999 | 16 October 2002 | 3 years, 249 days |
| Naledi Pandor | 
|
 South Africa
|
National Council of Provinces | 21 June 1999 | 4 May 2004 | 4 years, 318 days |
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 28 December 2000 | 31 December 2000 | 3 days | |
| Sylvia Flores |
|
Belize
|
Senate | 14 August 2001 | 4 February 2003 | 1 year, 174 days |
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 January 2002 | 30 June 2002 | 180 days | |
| Linda Baboolal |
|
 Trinidad and Tobago
|
Senate | 5 April 2002 | 17 December 2007 | 5 years, 256 days |
| Sharon R. Wilson |
|
Bahamas
|
Senate | 23 May 2002 | 23 May 2007 | 5 years, 0 days |
| 23 May 2012 | 24 May 2017 | 5 years, 1 day | ||||
|
|
 Bolivia
|
Chamber of Senators | August 2002 | 2003 | 153 days | |
| Yvonne Timmerman-Buck | 
|
 Netherlands
|
Eerste Kamer | 17 June 2003 | 6 October 2009 | 6 years, 111 days |
|
|
Grenada
|
Senate | 9 January 2004 | 2006 | 1 year, 357 days | |
| Joyce Kgoali |
|
South Africa
|
National Council of Provinces | 4 May 2004 | 21 November 2004 | 201 days |
| Anne-Marie Lizin | 
|
 Belgium
|
Senate | 20 July 2004 | 12 July 2007 | 2 years, 357 days |
| Chikage Oogi | 
|
 Japan
|
House of Councillors | 30 July 2004 | 28 July 2007 | 2 years, 363 days |
| Hazelyn Francis |
|
Antigua and Barbuda
|
Senate | 7 January 2005 | 17 July 2014 | 9 years, 191 days |
| Claudia Blum | 
|
 Colombia
|
Senate | 20 July 2005 | 20 July 2006 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Edna Madzongwe |
|
 Zimbabwe
|
Senate | 30 November 2005 | 11 September 2018 | 12 years, 285 days |
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 January 2006 | 30 June 2006 | 180 days | |
|
|
 Swaziland
|
Senate | 23 February 2006 | 23 October 2018 | 12 years, 242 days | |
| Helene Hayman, Baroness Hayman | 
|
 United Kingdom
|
House of Lords | 4 July 2006 | 31 August 2011 | 5 years, 58 days |
|
|
 Saint Lucia
|
Senate | 2007 | 2008 | 1 year, 0 days | |
|
|
Bahamas
|
Senate | 23 May 2007 | 23 May 2012 | 5 years, 0 days | |
| Nancy Patricia Gutiérrez |
|
Colombia
|
Senate | 20 July 2007 | 20 July 2008 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Andrea Gill |
|
Belize
|
Senate | 14 March 2008 | 3 February 2012 | 3 years, 326 days |
|
|
Grenada
|
Senate | 20 August 2008 | 20 February 2013 | 9 years, 6 days | |
| Rose Francine Rogombé |
|
 Gabon
|
Senate | 16 February 2009 | 9 June 2009 | 113 days |
| 9 June 2009 | 27 February 2015 | 5 years, 263 days | ||||
|
|
 Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
Dom Naroda | 26 February 2009 | 14 March 2009 | 16 days | |
| 14 July 2010 | 20 May 2011 | 310 days | ||||
| Erika Forster-Vannini | 
|
 Switzerland
|
Council of States | 27 November 2009 | 26 November 2010 | 364 days |
| Ana María Romero de Campero | 
|
Bolivia
|
Chamber of Senators | 19 January 2010 | 26 October 2010 | 298 days |
| Hannelore Kraft | 
|
 Germany
|
Bundesrat | 1 November 2010 | 31 October 2011 | 364 days |
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 July 2011 | 31 December 2011 | 183 days | |
| Frances D'Souza, Baroness D'Souza | 
|
United Kingdom
|
House of Lords | 1 September 2011 | 31 August 2016 | 4 years, 365 days |
| Valentina Matviyenko | 
|
 Russia
|
Federation Council | 21 September 2011 | Incumbent | 10 years, 158 days |
| Sabine de Bethune |
|
Belgium
|
Senate | 11 October 2011 | 14 October 2014 | 3 years, 3 days |
| Beatriz Rojkés de Alperovich | 
|
Argentina
|
Senate (Provisional President) |
30 November 2011 | 28 February 2014 | 2 years, 90 days |
| Kerryann Ifill |
|
 Barbados
|
Senate | 19 March 2012 | 5 June 2018 | 6 years, 78 days |
| Gabriela Montaño |
|
Bolivia
|
Chamber of Senators | 24 July 2012 | 25 January 2015 | 2 years, 185 days |
| Ankie Broekers-Knol | 
|
Netherlands
|
Eerste Kamer | 2 July 2013 | 11 June 2019 | 5 years, 344 days |
| Teresa Efua Asangono |
|
 Equatorial Guinea
|
Senate | 12 July 2013 | Incumbent | 8 years, 229 days |
| Isabel Allende | 
|
 Chile
|
Senate of the Republic | 11 March 2014 | 11 March 2015 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Thandi Modise | 
|
South Africa
|
National Council of Provinces | 21 May 2014 | 22 May 2019 | 5 years, 1 day |
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 July 2014 | 31 December 2014 | 183 days | |
| Alincia Williams-Grant |
|
Antigua and Barbuda
|
Senate | 17 July 2014 | Incumbent | 7 years, 224 days |
| Cristina Lizardo | 
|
 Dominican Republic
|
Senate | 16 August 2014 | 16 August 2016 | 2 years, 0 days |
| Christine Defraigne | 
|
Belgium
|
Senate | 14 October 2014 | 14 December 2018 | 3 years, 74 days |
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 January 2015 | 30 June 2015 | 180 days | |
| Raziah Ahmed |
|
Trinidad and Tobago
|
Senate | 3 February 2015 | 23 September 2015 | 232 days |
| Lucie Milebou Aubusson | 
|
Gabon
|
Senate | 27 February 2015 | Incumbent | 6 years, 364 days |
| Christine Kangaloo | 
|
Trinidad and Tobago
|
Senate | 23 September 2015 | Incumbent | 6 years, 156 days |
| Margaret Mensah-Williams | 
|
 Namibia
|
National Council | 8 December 2015 | 9 December 2019 | 4 years, 1 day |
| Gabriela Michetti | 
|
Argentina
|
Senate | 10 December 2015 | 10 December 2019 | 4 years, 0 days |
| Malu Dreyer | 
|
Germany
|
Bundesrat | 1 November 2016 | 31 October 2017 | 364 days |
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 January 2017 | 30 June 2017 | 180 days | |
|
|
Bahamas
|
Senate | 24 May 2017 | 5 December 2019 | 2 years, 195 days | |
| Mamonaheng Mokitimi |
|
 Lesotho
|
Senate | 11 July 2017 | Incumbent | 4 years, 230 days |
| Lucía Topolansky | 
|
 Uruguay
|
Senate | 13 September 2017 | 14 February 2020 | 2 years, 154 days |
| Karin Keller-Sutter | 
|
Switzerland
|
Council of States | 28 November 2017 | 27 November 2018 | 364 days |
|
|
Saint Lucia
|
Senate | 20 March 2018 | 17 August 2021 | 3 years, 150 days | |
| Elisabetta Casellati | 
|
 Italy
|
Senate of the Republic | 24 March 2018 | Incumbent | 3 years, 339 days |
| Keria Ibrahim |
|
 Ethiopia
|
House of Federation | 6 May 2018 | Incumbent | 3 years, 296 days |
| Inge Posch-Gruska | 
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 July 2018 | 1 January 2019 | 184 days |
| Mabel Chinomona |
|
Zimbabwe
|
Senate | 11 September 2018 | Incumbent | 3 years, 168 days |
| Princess |
|
Eswatini
|
Senate | 23 October 2018 | Incumbent | 3 years, 126 days |
| Adriana Salvatierra | 
|
Bolivia
|
Senate | 18 January 2019 | 14 November 2019 | 300 days |
| Jewel Taylor | 
|
 Liberia
|
Senate | 22 January 2019 | Incumbent | 3 years, 35 days |
| Dariga Nazarbayeva | 
|
 Kazakhstan
|
Senate | 20 March 2019 | 2 May 2020 | 1 year, 43 days |
| Tanzila Norbaeva | 
|
 Uzbekistan
|
Senate | 21 June 2019 | Incumbent | 2 years, 250 days |
| Sabine Laruelle | 
|
Belgium
|
Senate | 15 July 2019 | 13 October 2020 | 1 year, 90 days |
| Akiko Santō | 
|
Japan
|
House of Councillors | 1 August 2019 | Incumbent | 2 years, 209 days |
| Mónica Fernández Balboa | 
|
 Mexico
|
Senate of the Republic | 1 September 2019 | Incumbent | 2 years, 178 days |
| Mónica Eva Copa | 
|
Bolivia
|
Senate | 14 November 2019 | 3 November 2020 | 355 days |
| Pilar Llop | 
|
Spain
|
Senate | 3 December 2019 | 8 July 2021 | 1 year, 217 days |
| Mildred Hall-Watson |
|
Bahamas
|
Senate | 5 December 2019 | 6 October 2021 | 1 year, 305 days |
| Natalya Kochanova | 
|
 Belarus
|
Council of the Republic | 9 December 2019 | Incumbent | 2 years, 78 days |
| Cristina Fernández de Kirchner | 
|
Argentina
|
Senate | 10 December 2019 | Incumbent | 2 years, 78 days |
| Claudia Ledesma Abdala | 
|
Argentina
|
Senate (Provisional President) |
10 December 2019 | Incumbent | 2 years, 78 days |
| Beatriz Argimón | 
|
Uruguay
|
Senate | 1 March 2020 | Incumbent | 1 year, 362 days |
| Andrea Eder-Gitschthaler |
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 July 2020 | 31 December 2020 | 183 days |
| Stephanie D'Hose | 
|
Belgium
|
Senate | 13 October 2020 | Incumbent | 1 year, 136 days |
| Carolyn Trench-Sandiford |
|
Belize
|
Senate | 11 December 2020 | Incumbent | 1 year, 77 days |
| Anca Dragu | 
|
 Romania
|
Senate | 21 December 2020 | 23 November 2021 | 337 days |
| Yasna Provoste | 
|
Chile
|
Senate | 17 March 2021 | 25 August 2021 | 161 days |
| Ximena Rincón | 
|
25 August 2021 | Incumbent | 346 days | ||
| Lashell Adderley |
|
Bahamas
|
Senate | 6 October 2021 | Incumbent | 143 days |
|
|
Austria
|
Federal Council | 1 January 2022 | Incumbent | 56 days |
Territorial[]
Denotes incumbent speaker of parliament
| Name | Image | Territory | Legislative Body | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carol Bassett |
|
 Bermuda
|
Senate | 2008 | 19 July 2017 | 9 years, 199 days |
| Clare Christian |
|
 Isle of Man
|
Legislative Council and Tynwald | 12 July 2011 | 19 July 2016 | 5 years, 7 days |
|
|
Bermuda
|
Senate | 19 July 2017 | Incumbent | 4 years, 222 days |
See also[]
Categories:
- National legislatures
- Women legislative speakers
- Lists of female politicians
- Feminism-related lists
- Lists of women legislators
- Lists of legislative speakers