At the institutional level, citizenship or documentation requirements for voter registration are often more difficult to obtain for women than men because of discriminatory citizenship laws in many countries. Registering to vote and voting are usually accompanied by long waiting times or significant travel distances that conflict with women’s domestic responsibilities, work schedules, child care or lack of funds and freedom of movement. In low and middleincome countries, 65-70 percent of women with disabilities live in rural areas, making access to polling stations even more difficult.10 Good Practice In Burma, IFES strengthened the skills of women with and without disabilities who are grassroots leaders to help them feel confident and empowered to take part in transitional processes and advocate for their specific priorities. Safety concerns about gender-based electoral violence are another hindrance to women’s political participation. Women with disabilities are three times more likely to experience physical or sexual violence than women without disabilities.11 Social and cultural barriers to women’s participation include a lack of civic and political awareness, often caused by low levels of literacy and education among women. Lower levels of education faced by persons with disabilities are even higher for women, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimates that while the global literacy rate for persons with disabilities is 3 percent, for women with disabilities it is as low as 1 percent.12 Cultural traditions that restrict women’s independence or intimidate women from exercising their individual choices can result in proxy voting.13 In the case of women with disabilities who are often more dependent on family support, this risk is even higher.  Although women’s rights are almost universally recognized in law, advances in women’s political participation and representation usually lag behind other development indicators. The number of women legislators, election administrators and political party leaders around the world remains startlingly low, with representation by women with disabilities even lower. Women’s presence in leadership positions alongside gender-sensitive male counterparts can play a critical role in reversing this trend. While not a perfect system, some countries such as Iraq and Rwanda have made significant gains through gender quotas in legislatures. The full participation of women in political, social and economic life benefits not only themselves, but also families, communities and nations. Disabled Persons’ Organizations The global disability rights movement is driven largely by persons with disabilities through advocacy and organizing. DPOs refer to organizations run by and for persons with disabilities. People without disabilities are sometimes members of DPOs, but the majority of the membership and leadership must have a disability in order for the organization to be considered a DPO. DPOs exist in virtually every country and tend to rally around the unified slogan, “nothing about us, without us.” 10  “Factsheet: Violence against Women and Girls with Disabilities.” Women Watch. United Nations. <http://www. un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw/csw57/side_events/Fact sheet VAWG with disabilities FINAL .pdf>. 11  The World Bank/Yale University. “HIV/AIDS & Disability: Capturing Hidden Voices.” April 2004: 10. <http:// siteresources.worldbank.org/DISABILITY/Resources/Health-and-Wellness/HIVAIDS.pdf>. 12  UN Enable. “UN Enable Factsheet on Persons with Disabilities.” United Nations. <http://www.un.org/disabilities/ default.asp?>. 13  Proxy voting is when a person nominates someone else to vote on their behalf. 28 International Foundation for Electoral Systems and National Democratic Institute