Kerry L. Haynie
THE INCREASE IN THE NUMBER of women elected to public office is one of the most visible and significant changes in U.S. politics over the past fifty years. This change has been particularly noticeable in legislatures. Between 1970 and 2019, the number of women state legislators grew more than sevenfold, increasing from just over 300 to 2,145, and women now occupy 29 percent of all state legislative seats. Nationally, after the 2018 election cycle, women held historic high numbers of House and Senate seats, 24 percent and 26 percent respectively. Despite these remarkable changes, it is fitting for Jennifer Piscopo to remind us during this centennial year that women remain severely underrepresented in governing institutions. The dearth of women policymakers has implications for democratic theory and public policy.
One of the core tenets of our representative democracy is that the substantive interests found within the polity should be represented in government through deliberation. Several studies have found such substantive representation depends to a significant degree on descriptive representation. That is, we know that there is a strong connection between who representatives are and the policies they pursue in government. In legislatures, women are generally more likely to focus on issues particularly relevant to women (e.g., reproductive rights, women’s health, childcare, family leave, education, discrimination, and social welfare). From decades of research it is clear, as Jane Mansbridge has put it, “descriptive representation by gender improves substantive outcomes for women in every polity for which we have a measure.”