What Factors Shape the Substantive Representation of Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals in Parliament? Testing the Impact of Minority Membership, Political Values and Awareness

The importance of minority parliamentarians for substantive representation is widely acknowledged, but little research exists on further explanations. By studying the substantive representation of the interests of lesbians, gays, and bisexuals (LGBs), this study analyses why parliamentarians stand in for interests of minorities with an invisible characteristic. A quantitative content analysis of more than 950,000 British and Irish parliamentary questions provides the basis for the analysis (2002–2017). The study considers parliamentarians’ characteristics as explanatory factors. The results indicate that parliamentary presence is vital for LGBs. However, the most active parliamentarians are non-minority members: political values and awareness are also at play. Moreover, there are differences between the two parliaments.