BEFORE 1945 Austria was the only State to have elected a woman to the presidency of one of the Parliament's Chambers (the Bundesrat) before the Second World War FROM 1945 TO 1997 Only 42 of the 186 States with a legislative institution have, at one time or another in recent history, selected a woman to preside over Parliament or a House of Parliament: this has occurred 78 times in all. Those concerned are 18 European countries, 19 countries of the Americas, 3 African countries, 1 Asian country and 1 country in the Pacific. 24 of the States concerned had a bicameral Parliament, and the presidency was entrusted to a woman a little more often in the Senate than in the lower House. AT PRESENT: SITUATION AS OF 31 MAY 2008   Only 30 women preside over one of the Houses of the 189 existing Parliaments, 76 of which are bicameral. The countries concerned are: Albania (Poeople's Assembly); Antigua and Barbuda (House of Representatives and Senate); Austria (Nationalrat); Bahamas (Senate); Belize (Senate); Colombia (Senado de la república); Dominica (House of Assembly); Estonia (Riigikogu); Gambia (National Assembly); Hungary (Orszaggyules); Israel (Knesset); Lesotho (National Assembly); Mexico (Cámera de Diputados); Netherlands (Eerste Kamer der Staten-Generaal and Twede Kamer der Staten Generaal); New Zealand (House of Representatives); Pakistan (National Assembly); Saint Kitts and Nevis (National Assembly); Saint Lucia (House of Assembly and Senate); San Marino (Consiglio Grande e Generale); South Africa (National Assembly); Swaziland (Senate); Turkmenistan (Mejlis); United Kingdom (House of Lords); United States of America (House of Representatives); Uzbekistan (Legislative chamber); Venezuela (Asamblea Nacional); Zimbabwe (Senate). Women therefore occupy only 11.3% of the total number of 265 posts of Presiding Officers of Parliament or of one of its Houses.