Female Representation in Populist Radical Right Parties and the Disappearance of the Radical Right Gender Gap – The Case of France and the Front National

Populist radical right parties are traditionally male-dominated parties, both on the party and the electorate level. The radical right gender gap however is steadily decreasing with female politicians obtaining more influence in populist radical right parties in general as well as gaining leadership positions. Moreover, the gender gap regarding right-wing populist parties is narrowing on the electoral level. In the face of populist radical right parties’ growing political success, it is therefore vital to understand how rising female representation influences the female electorate’s support for these parties. This article will investigate whether descriptive representation of women leads to more substantive representation and whether female support for populist radical right parties rises correspondingly. To analyse this relationship the case of France and the Front National will be applied. Specifically, the French Electoral Studies will be employed to analyse female support for the Front National and women’s self-positioning on a left-right-scale. In addition, a quantitative content analysis of gender-related topics and policies in the Front/Rassemblement National election manifestos under Jean-Marie Le Pen (1972 to 2011) and Marine Le Pen (2011 to 2022), applying an a priori created customised coding scheme, will be conducted.