Sexism in its various forms remains a persistent challenge for women in politics. During electoral campaigns – periods of intense political activity and frequent interactions with fellow politicians, journalists and citizens – both male and female candidates may face heightened hostility. For women, however, this may include gender-specific forms of attacks. While the literature on violence against women in politics has begun to document such sexist experiences, little attention has been paid to how female candidates cope with these gendered dynamics. This paper contributes to addressing this gap by proposing a typology of coping strategies that women candidates deploy to navigate sexist attacks during electoral campaigns. The inductive analysis draws on in-depth interviews with 21 women candidates who ran in the 2024 regional, federal, and European elections in Belgium. We show that women candidates adopt five strategies to anticipate sexism: (1) avoiding; (2) adapting; (3) over-preparing; (4) resisting; and (5) educating. In response to sexist incidents, women deploy three additional strategies: (1) taking distance; (2) seeking support; and (3) reporting or opposing. The development of these coping strategies illustrates the additional and unequal burden that women candidates face during electoral campaigns compared to their men counterparts.
