NAME; OKOH OSEREME MICHELIA
MATRIC NO; 170903506
COURSE TITLE AND COURSE CODE; GENDER AND POLITICS (POL 418)
CAN THE REDUCTION IN DISCRIMINATION FROM QUOTAS TRANSLATE INTO INCREASED
VOTES FOR FEMALE CANDIDATES?
Quotas are policies put in place to redress the underrepresentation of a particular gender.
Jones (1996) asserts, gender quotas emerged in response to the evident underrepresentation
of women in the formal political arena and they involved the introduction of specified minimum
levels of representation for each sex. Gender quotas are seen as necessary compensatory
measures to ensure equity, since political systems have historically underprivileged women in
terms of presence and access to resources and power (Dahlerup 2006. Quotas principally give
women a chance at politics that wouldn’t readily be given them. Quotas help rectify women’s
underrepresentation in prominent positions and make it entirely normal for women to take up
managerial roles in political systems. For many long years, the society has been dominated by
patriarchal values whereby male dominance is spilled allover ranging from private to public life.
Women are pushed aside in the society and are limited to domestic and household duties, not
due to their lack of skills, but mainly due to their gender. Even when few women are able to
make it to the political arena, they are faced with challenges such as abuse, gender-based
violence and some are even given lower offices. The UN Women 2019 shows that women in
ministerial positions are mainly concerned about issues including social affairs, family, women
affairs, while the number of women in mostly male associated political positions such as foreign
affairs, defense or justice is significantly low. Similarly, political parties are often referred to as
the most effective structure through which women become involved in politics; the practices,
policies and values political parties place on women have a significant impact on women’s
political participation and representation. However, majority of the political parties are found
guilty of the underrepresentation of women in leadership positions, there’s lack of gender
equality policies, unfavorable placement of women on candidates lists and the male
chauvinistic system of nomination. All these, coupled with so many other factors restrict
women’s political participation. Scholars have found that one of the hindrances to women
running for office or being voted for by the electorate is the culture which shapes social
attitudes towards gender roles (Yoon 2011). The relaxation of such discrimination and
hindrances would invariably lead to increased participation of women in politics.
The underrepresentation of women in parliaments is often understood as a result of structural
gender inequalities and quotas have been increasingly put in place to try to level the playing
field and help women overcome these hurdles (Murray 2014). Quotas grant women access to
the political arena often perceived as the men’s domain. Quotas would no doubt lead to
increased representation and participation in politics which would translate into greater
chances of women getting voted. Sun-uk (1995) argues that the need for quota system stems
from the lack of opportunities for women to perform their potential capabilities. To a significant
extent, quotas lead to increased votes of women candidates as the presence of women in the
political scene serves as a motivating factor to other women which further leads to rise in
women activism in a bid to empower and educate even more women and normalize the
presence of women in politics. When women run for political posts, other women mobilize and
advocate for the election to public office of women candidates. A vivid example is the Women
of Liberia Mass Action which played a critical role in mobilizing women voter registration and
encouraging women to vote. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s victory (president of Liberia 2006-2018) was
credited to the high number of women voters who participated in the election. The
implementation of quota increases women participation in politics which include voting,
contesting for elections, being outspoken on political views and it even portrays women in the
new light of being confident and qualified with the ability to lead and make effective policy
decisions. On the other hand however, as much as quota increases the participation of women,
it doesn’t fully guarantee increased votes of women. In a democracy, votes are based on
ideologies and policies not just based on gender. If the ideologies of the female candidate don’t
appeal to the actual needs of the people, there would be the usual low votes. The ideologies of
the political parties the women belong to go a long way in affecting her supporters. A quota
goes a long way in increasing votes for female candidates but is not a guaranteeing factor,
other necessary factors come into play to ensure increased votes.
REFERENCES
Bosha, Sarah L. “Quota Systems and Women Political Leadership Development in
Africa.” Journal of African Union Studies, vol. 3, no. 2/3, 2014, pp. 103–114. JSTOR,
[Link]/stable/26893867.
Gender Quotas: Towards an impoved Democracy by Eszter Solyo,
[Link]
Gender Quotas| International Ideas [Link]