The European Parliament is widely assumed to be a frontrunner for gender equality, due to it traditionally having more female members than those in the national parliaments of its member states. This chapter investigates descriptive representation in the new European Parliament (EP) which for the first-time ever has seen a shrinking number of female MEPs (Members of the European Parliament). The decline is linked to the losses of centre-left parties in the elections and the rise of populist, right-wing parties (Green-Alternative-Liberal-Traditional-Authoritarian-Nationalist (GAL-TAN) cleavage), and because of an increasing fragmentation in national party systems and the high number of small and mini-parties. The chapter also illustrates that the number of women in intra-EP leadership has declined, for instance in committees, even if the number of “women pockets” has decreased. This development will most likely also have policy implications.