Outside Research 

Opening the Gates - Clearing the Way for More Women to Hold Political Office

CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS

This paper looks at the current state of women’s representation in elected office, what barriers to holding political office women face, and what can be done to make progress toward gender parity.

The Gavel Gap: Who Sits in Judgement on State Courts?

American Constitution Society for Law and Policy

"Women comprise roughly one-half of the U.S. population and one-half of American law students. But, less than one-third of state judges are women. In some states, women are underrepresented on the bench by a ratio of one woman on the bench for every four women in the state. Not a single state has as many women judges as it does men."

The Legislative Effectiveness of Women in Congress

VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY

“Consistent with women adopting legislative strategies of exerting high effort, consensus building, and issue specialization, we find conditions under which women are more effective lawmakers than their male counterparts.”

Men Rule: The Continued Under-Representation of Women in U.S. Politics

American University

“Study after study finds that, when women run for office, they perform just as well as their male counterparts. … We argue that the fundamental reason for women’s under-representation is that they do not run for office.”

Favorite Sons (and Daughters):The Constitution’s Gender-Egalitarian Minimum Age Qualifications

Yale University

This text “argues the Constitution’s minimum age qualifications serve an important egalitarian function for women.” Included are statistics on candidate’s average age of entry into office by gender, as well as how having children affects this age.

Why Don’t Women Run for Office?

Brown University

“Extensive research shows that when women run for office – at any level – they perform just as well as men. Yet women remain severely under-represented in our political institutions. Thus, the question that merits investigation is why so few women decide to run.”