Violence against politicians in the Republic of Ireland: exploring variation over time and between local and general elections

The apparent increase in violence directed against political actors in democracies around the world has given rise to a body of work that seeks to explore and explain the phenomenon. Contributions from scholars in the areas of violence against women in politics (VAWIP) and gendered aspects of political violence (GAPV) conceptualise the phenomenon as encompassing physical, sexual, psychological, economic and semiotic violence. This broad definition recognises that such intimidation, harassment, threats and abuse has a significant online component, with social media serving as a vector for violence. Early studies initially employed surveys and interviews to collect data on the experiences of women politicians. Subsequent research included men, thus enabling a direct exploration of the gendered nature of the phenomenon. However, many of these studies consist of a cross-sectional design, thus limiting our ability to explore variation in its prevalence and form over time. This paper responds to this gap by investigating whether violence against politicians varies over time in its scope and in its form. It further considers whether the gendered patterns of political violence demonstrated by previous research (see Buckley, Keenan & Mariani, 2024) vary between contests (local or national). Using data from four original surveys – the 2019 and 2024 Local Election Candidates Study and the 2020 and 2024 Comparative Candidates Survey – and semi-structured interviews conducted with current and former elected representatives it explores these questions in the context of the Republic of Ireland. Ireland’s localised and personalised political culture, makes candidates highly visible and accessible to the electorate, making them particularly vulnerable to experiencing political violence.