Gender Stereotypes and Corruption: HowCandidates Affect Perceptions of Election Fraud

How do stereotypes of female candidates influence citizens ’ perceptions of political fraud and corruption? Because gender stereotypes characterize female politicians as more ethical, honest, and trustworthy than male politicians, there are important theoretical reasons for expecting female politicians to mitigate perceptions of fraud and corruption. Research using observational data, however, is limited in its ability to establish a causal relationship between women’s involvement in politics and reduced concerns about corruption. Using a novel experimental survey design, we find that the presence of a female candidate systematically reduces the probability that individuals will express strong suspicion of election fraud in what would otherwise be considered suspicious circumstances. Results from this experiment also reveal interesting heterogeneous effects: individuals who are not influenced by shared partisanship are even more responsive to gender cues; and male respondents are more responsive to those cues than females. These findings have potential implications for women running for office, both with respect to election fraud and corruption more broadly, particularly in low-information electoral settings. A ttempts to increase women’s participation and representation inpolitical systems since the early 1990s have brought renewed interest Wewould like to thank Lonna Rae Atkeson, Justin Esarey, Barbara Norrander, IrfanNooruddin,Mark Peffley, Melody Ellis Valdini, JustinWedeking, and three anonymous reviewers at Politics & Gender fo