Gender Stereotypes and Electoral Success

In recent years, the Democratic Party has been considerably more successful at electing women than the Republican Party. Research suggests that the Democratic advantage for women stems from a more inclusive party culture and party support for women-friendly policies. This paper considers whether the gender gap in representation between the parties may also be shaped by intersection of institutions and ideology. Specifically, this study examines how ideological gender differences between the sexes impact the success of female candidates in primary and general elections. The intersection of party ideology and gender stereotypes shape the playing field for female candidates differently than that of a man’s, depending on the party of the candidate and the ideological dispositions of the electorate. Due to ideological stereotypes, women candidates are perceived to be more liberal than they truly are. The “liberal female candidate” stereotype creates advantages for female candidates in Democratic primaries, but disadvantages for female candidates in Republican primaries. The impact of gendered ideological stereotypes could have a profound impact on opportunity structure for female candidates, and partially explains why Democrats have been more successful than Republicans when it comes to recruitment and nomination of female candidates.