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How political violence genders representation

Gender
Institutions
Political Violence
Representation
Mixed Methods
Sandra Håkansson
Uppsala Universitet
Sandra Håkansson
Uppsala Universitet

Abstract

A challenge that ought to be at the top of political parties’ agendas is the increasing problem of physical and psychological violence against politicians, and its implications for gender equality. Several studies from various countries find that harassment, threats, and intimidation targeting politicians, and particularly women, is increasing year by year. The obvious question of how this political violence impacts on candidate selection is pressing for parties. Indeed, impacts on elected politicians’ and potential candidates’ exit and entry decisions have been found in previous studies (e.g. Daniele 2017; Herrick and Franklin 2019; Pinotti 2012). When specifically directed at women in politics, violence can have wider implications than on its direct targets by creating a heightened sense of vulnerability among women as a group (Krook & Restrepo Sanín 2016). In order to fully grasp how political violence genders representation, focusing on its consequences for individual politicians’ entry and exit decisions is not enough. Women remaining in politics but at a higher personal cost than men colleagues undeniably constitutes a source of political inequality. This paper provides a systematic study of the gendered impacts of political violence on four key areas relevant for representation. Building on theories of feminist institutionalism, representation, and parliamentary workplace perspectives, I develop a four-dimensional typology of gendered consequences of political violence: political survival, political voice, representative functions, and costs to office. I analyse the gendered impact of violence in these areas using a mixed methods approach combining survey and interview data on Swedish women and men politicians. I find that gender conditions the impact of violence in various ways in each of the areas. Although women and men largely react and respond similarly to violence exposure, more women are affected in each area related to the fact that more women experience violence. In addition, the consequences are gendered due to how political violence dynamics interact with pre-existing gender norms on viable political candidates and the prevailing masculine culture in politics (see Lovenduski 2005). In terms of political voice, a pronounced gendered consequence is that women silence themselves in political debates hence decreasing their agenda-setting power. Political survival becomes still more gendered as violence against politicians enforces masculine norms on ideal characteristics for political representatives. Furthermore, women’s opportunities to carry out representative functions such as being available for direct interactions with constituents are circumscribed by violence. Similarly, the costs for holding political office are higher for women than men, including emotional costs and adaptations of representatives’ private lives. This violence accordingly exacerbates barriers for women in politics. The findings have important implications for understanding the consequences of violence for gender and representation, and identifies areas that parties in particular need to be aware of in order to effectively attain gender equal opportunities for political representation.