Running as a Feminist: How Voters Respond to Feminist Candidates

How do voters respond to feminist candidates? In recent years, numerous factors have led to feminism’s increased salience in the political discourse. From the #MeToo movement, to the continuous increases in women’s political representation, to the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade, feminism is once again entering the political mainstream. Given the necessity of feminism after the attack on women’s rights, it is important to bring more feminists into office and subsequently, understand how feminist candidates are viewed by the electorate. To test these questions, I utilized multiple methods including focus groups, survey research, and a survey experiment. The focus group asked students their opinions on feminists and feminist candidates, both positive and negative. The survey asked a variety of questions on feminism, gender, and other sociopolitical issues, to analyze the best ways of operationalizing feminism. The survey experiment presented respondents with a fictional news article of a fictional candidate running for a seat in the House of Representatives. The article varied the candidate’s gender, partisan affiliation, and whether or not the candidate identified as a feminist. Respondents were then asked a series of questions on their opinions of the candidate they viewed. My findings indicate that feminist candidates are not overly disadvantaged compared to their non-feminist counterparts, though some negative consequences remain for certain types of feminists, along gendered and party lines.