While the Pacific ‘boasts a … rich legal and policy framework dedicated to the promotion of gender equality’, women remain significantly under-represented in formal politics. Development partners have provided significant support over many years to Pacific women to improve their representation and leadership in formal political institutions; increasing the level of women’s representation in parliaments has been a particular focus. The rationale for this attention has been the very low level of women’s representation in the Pacific compared to other regions. It has also reflected the apparent important development implications of increasing women’s representation in parliament, and the thinking that small gains in women’s political representation will lead to broader development gains.