Hybrid session: In-person and on Zoom

Gendering the Saeima: The Politics of Women’s Substantive Representation in Latvia

Laura Dean (Millikin University)

Does higher representation mean more feminist policies?

The 2018 parliamentary elections were a watershed year for women in Latvian politics. In this election, women’s descriptive representation increased from 19% to 31%, the largest increase since the re-establishment of independence

in 1991 with no gender quotas or institutional mechanisms for gender equality. Paxton and Hughes (2017), categorize this 12% increase as a big jump in women’s representation. This presentation, part of a larger book project, questions if the sharp increase in women’s descriptive representation corresponds to better substantive representation for women in Latvia. Using data from in-depth political ethnographic research in the Saeima (Latvian parliament), including participant observation and 44 interviews with female members of parliament, I examine substantive representation in the Latvian case. I use interviews to explore if women MPs believe they take women’s interests
into account in their daily parliamentary work. Then I compare this to differences in parliamentary voting patterns, bill sponsorship, and speeches.

Workshop format: We ask that participants read the paper in advance. At the workshop, Prof. Dean will give a short summary, after which participants are invited to ask questions based on the paper and presentation.

Use this link to register for the Zoom and to receive the paper

Join us in-person! CUNY Graduate Center, 365 5th Avenue, room 5203, Ralph Bunche Institute. Light refreshments and conversation after the talk.