Violence against Women in Politics

We present the first causal evidence that female politicians are more likely to be targets of political violence. Leveraging fourteen years of independent data on attacks against Italian politicians, we show that marginally elected female mayors, similar to their male colleagues and elected in comparable towns, are three times more likely to be attacked. We test whether violence aims at strategically influencing women’s policies or it stems from a gender bias among perpetrators. We find no gender differences in policymaking, performance, and corruption. Instead, consistent with discrimination and the application of double standards, the gender gap in attacks emerges regardless of mayors’ policy choices and performance in office. Female mayors are less likely to seek re-election after an attack, underscoring how violence may foster the persistence of the political gender gap.