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The Political Representation of Women over Time

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The Palgrave Handbook of Women’s Political Rights

Part of the book series: Gender and Politics ((GAP))

Abstract

Hughes and Paxton map trends in women’s political representation from 1945 to 2015. While an upward trajectory is clear, there is significant variation across countries. In some countries, such as Sweden, South Africa, and Rwanda, women have made remarkable progress in their political representation. In other countries, the struggle for equal representation proceeds slowly. Within and between countries, some populations, religions, and governments remain openly hostile to the notion of women in politics. Based on these differences, Hughes and Paxton identify and describe four basic paths to women’s increased representation over time: (1) No Change, (2) Incremental Gains, (3) Fast-Track Growth, and (4) Plateau.

The authors contributed equally to this chapter. We gratefully acknowledge the support of the National Science Foundation (SES-0549973).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Melanie M. Hughes

  2. University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA

    Pamela Paxton

Authors
  1. Melanie M. Hughes
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  2. Pamela Paxton
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Correspondence to Melanie M. Hughes .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

    Susan Franceschet

  2. Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA

    Mona Lena Krook

  3. McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada

    Netina Tan

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Hughes, M.M., Paxton, P. (2019). The Political Representation of Women over Time. In: Franceschet, S., Krook, M.L., Tan, N. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Women’s Political Rights. Gender and Politics. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59074-9_3

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