Contagion, Socialisation, or Kinship? Quotas and Gendered Career Differences in Transnational European Party Families

Abstract

Speakers: William Daniel, University of Nottingham Andrea Aldrich, Yale University Do gender equality norms spread within party families via the use of gender quotas? We investigate this question by examining gender equality in the candidate selection and leadership allocation practices within the European Parliament (EP) over time, asking whether and how political parties learn from one another in the presence of gender quotas. We focus on this through the lens of the European Parliament’s (EP) political groups (EPGs), where national parties have the unique opportunity to collaborate in transnational party blocs. We frame this discussion using three different theoretical perspectives – contagion, socialisation, and kinship – which are themselves familiar to the literature on both elections and politics and gender. Using novel quantitative data on MEP careers and EPG electoral and membership lists from 1979-2021, we assess the impact of quota regimes on gendered patterns of career advancement within the EP. We complement our findings with qualitative interview and archival data to explore how career data can be used to trace the spread of gender equality among legislators and legislative groups. Given the supranational nature of EP political contestation (e.g., the current discussion over transnational lists is 2024), our findings have particular ramifications for the promotion of gender equality in the European national political systems.