Waiting in the Wings?: The Experience of Women's Wings of Political Parties in Multiple Regions

Political parties are widely recognized as one of the primary arbiters of women’s representation in a political system (see Norris 1997, Caul 1999, 2001, and the 2010 Symposium on the Comparative Politics of Gender in Perspectives on Politics 8(1): 159-240). Many political parties organize their women members through women’s wings. But are these structures good or bad for women? A women’s party unit could be a way for women to gain representation, a “safe space” for women to burnish their political skills and work together to pressure the party to address their issues. Or, women’s units may provide a mechanism for parties to limit the participation of women and ghettoize women’s issues. Childs and Kittilson (2016) study women’s wings of political parties in Western Europe, suggesting a research agenda for the consideration of these structures and their impact. This paper extends their research and applies their framework to examine the presence and experience of women’s wings of parties in other regions. Using an original data set of political parties that considers the powers, degree of institutionalization and accountability of women’s wings in Latin America, MENA, Africa and Asia, this paper tests the conditions under which women’s wings of parties are more likely to exist. Comparing the data to Childs and Kittilson’s claims, this paper also argues that regional and ideological factors, among others, govern whether women’s wings are means for diverting women’s engagement or empowering them to make claims on their party leadership. And, it refines the Childs and Kittilson framework for comparative research on women’s wings.