Lost in election. How different electoral systems translate the voting gender gap into gender representation bias

Abstract

The voting gender gap characterises several countries and is likely to translate into the composition of elected assemblies and governments. Starting from the given preferences of the electors, different electoral rules may translate this gap into different outcomes in terms of parliament composition. To amplify or attenuate this gap results in generating a sort of gender representation bias. This paper investigates if and to what extent different electoral rules generate gender representation bias when translating votes into seats. It proposes a theoretical framework to capture the potential of an electoral system to amplify or attenuate the voting gender gap. Then, using survey data and different indices of representativeness and governability, this paper provides empirical tests for the theoretical framework. Both the theory and the simulations indicate that majority systems magnify the gender gap while proportional rules are likely to reproduce it with minimal distortions.