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The Stability Effect of Elected Women: Gender or Seniority?

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Abstract

By relying on a policy aimed at reducing the gender gap among members of local councils in Italy, we show that a larger share of women causes more government stability. This effect is mainly driven by first-time elected women, who have a lower probability of getting reelected when compared to councillors elected in previous races, too. It holds when controlling for council fixed effect, councillor characteristics and political fragmentation. On average, the stability effect implies two year longer duration of a government that otherwise would be unseated. These findings are more consistent with a story of economic incentives shaping voting behaviour rather than one related to the peculiar behaviour of women in elected offices.

Suggested Citation

  • Antonio Acconcia & Carla Ronza, 2021. "The Stability Effect of Elected Women: Gender or Seniority?," CSEF Working Papers 611, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy, revised 15 Feb 2023.
    • Handle: RePEc:sef:csefwp:611
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Government Stability; Female Councillors; Political Seniority; Reelection Probability.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • H11 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - Structure and Scope of Government
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • K16 - Law and Economics - - Basic Areas of Law - - - Election Law

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