Ideology trumps gender: Left-wing women and British party politics

Although British political parties have increased the number of female MPs in Parliament, a neoliberal framework privileges a liberal feminist approach to politics that leaves women with a very specific kind of female representative that fails to represent the interests of the majority of female voters. The women that are visible within the centre-left Labour Party are those that are most ideologically liberal, with leftist figures such as Dianne Abbot and Emily Thornberry receiving at best no media coverage, and at worst heavily critical coverage. It is a question of political visibility which leaves female Labour voters with the choice of either jumping on a liberal feminist movement, and supporting popular media-friendly female politicians, or choosing to vote for visible socialist male politicians such as Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell. The media’s presentation of women having an uncomplicated choice when it comes to voting in terms of their gender risks rendering such women that choose to vote for more ideologically-suitable male candidates invisible