Is Local Office a Springboard for Women to Dáil Éireann?

Previous research has found the single transferable vote electoral system is relatively friendly to women candidates. Despite this, female representation in the Irish Parliament remains substantially lower than in most other democracies. Drawing on pipeline theory and localism, we assess the impact...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inWomen & politics Vol. 36; no. 3; p. 311
Main Authors Buckley, Fiona, Mariani, Mack, McGing, Claire, White, Timothy
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published New York Taylor & Francis LLC 01.07.2015
Subjects
Candidates
Gender differences
Local elections
Parliaments
Political representation
Political theory
Women
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Summary:Previous research has found the single transferable vote electoral system is relatively friendly to women candidates. Despite this, female representation in the Irish Parliament remains substantially lower than in most other democracies. Drawing on pipeline theory and localism, we assess the impact of local officeholding on the success of male and female major party candidates in the 2007 and 2011 Irish general elections. We find previous experience in local office is a key springboard to higher office for men and women, and when women serve in local government, the likelihood of election increases significantly.
ISSN:1554-477X
1554-4788