Does Clientelism Help or Hurt Female Candidates? Evidence from Algeria

• In Event: Experiments with Political Elites

Abstract

Does the clientelistic electoral context help or hurt female candidates? Extant literature on women’s electability focuses largely on stereotypes of females as having—or lacking—the traits and competencies needed for effective leadership. Yet, we know little about how the clientelistic political context shapes female electability. Drawing on an original experiment conducted in 2022-2023 among 1,473 citizens in four communes in western Algeria, I test the competing or complementary role of candidates’ party identification and perceived ability to provide wasta in explaining the electability of female candidates. I find that perceived ability and willingness to provide wasta to the voter is a stronger predictor of electability, yet the perceived ability of candidates to do so is shaped by gendered power structures. Male candidates from the pro-regime party, the National Liberation Front (FLN) are perceived as most able to provide wasta, while male and female candidates from the Islamist Movement for Society and Peace (MSP) are seen as least likely. Local voters regarded those from their same intersectional social groups across gender and religion as being most willing to serve them. By teasing out the role of perceived willingness and ability to provide wasta and its role in shaping female electability, this paper contributes to the literature on gender and politics and offers policymakers greater insights into strategies for promoting gender equality and local development.

Author

• Lindsay J. Benstead, Portland State University