Gender Turnover and Roll‐Call Voting in the U.S. House of Representatives

Abstract

A number of studies suggest that the gender of a legislator affects his or her congressional ideology. We argue that these studies may have produced misleading results because of insufficient controls for constituency influences. To better account for constituency effects, we use a longitudinal research design based on electoral turnover, which holds constituency constant while allowing gender and party to vary. We apply ordinary least squares regression to data from the 103d, 104th, and 105th Houses of Representatives and estimate the effect of gender turnover on changes in DW‐NOMINATE roll‐call voting scores. We find that, when we sufficiently control for both party and constituency influences, gender is not a determinant of the liberalness of a representative's roll‐call voting behavior.

Gender and Roll Call Voting Behavior in Congress: A Cross-Chamber Analysis

“…In the modern House of Representatives partisan polarization is so deep that over the past few Congresses gender differences are imperceptible once constituency effects are controlled for. This study confirms the most recent research on voting in the U.S. House that has uncovered no meaningful differences in the roll call ideology of male and female representatives (Frederick 2009;Schwindt-Bayer and Corbetta 2004;Simon and Palmer 2010). The extreme polarization in the House and the rigid control the majority party has over the rules of the institution do not foster conditions where gender differences can be readily observed.…”

“…Whether looking at multiple indices of liberalism or conservatism or at specific issues substantively related to the concerns of women a wide array of scholars has established that women tend be to the left of their male colleagues (Burrell 1994;Clark 1998;Dodson 2006;Dolan 1997;Francovic 1977;Frederick 2011;Pearson 2009;Rocca et al 2008;Swers 1998 and2002;Tatalovich and Schier 1993;Welch 1985). In spite of this evidence an emerging line of studies have begun to question the conventional wisdom (Frederick 2009;Schwindt-Bayer and Corbetta 2004;Simon and Palmer 2010). The message emanating from this line of scholarship is that gender is not a significant variable when it comes to predicting how members of Congress are positioned on the ideological spectrum.…”

Are Female House Members Still More Liberal in a Polarized Era? The Conditional Nature of the Relationship Between Descriptive and Substantive Representation

“…10 However, many scholars have failed to unearth any significant link between gender status and liberalism using Poole and Rosenthal's DW-NOMINATE scores as the dependent variable (McCarty, Poole, and Rosenthal 1997;Schwindt-Bayer and Corbetta 2004). For instance, using a turnover analysis of House members from 1993, Schwindt-Bayer and Corbetta (2004 found that changing from a female to a male representative had no statistically significant effect on the ideological direction of roll-call voting. 11 McCarty, Poole, andRosenthal (1997, 2006) assessed the impact of gender on ideology for individual Congresses and uncovered an inconsistent relationship between the two variables.…”

“…In addition, other studies limited specifically to voting patterns on women's issues have found that gender is a significant indicator of taking the liberal position as well, especially as it applies to female Republicans (Burrell 1994;Dodson 2006;Dolan 1997;Evans 2005;Leader 1977;Oldmixon 2002;Swers 1998Swers , 2002Tatalovich and Schier 1993). 10 However, many scholars have failed to unearth any significant link between gender status and liberalism using Poole and Rosenthal's DW-NOMINATE scores as the dependent variable (McCarty, Poole, and Rosenthal 1997;Schwindt-Bayer and Corbetta 2004). For instance, using a turnover analysis of House members from 1993, Schwindt-Bayer and Corbetta (2004 found that changing from a female to a male representative had no statistically significant effect on the ideological direction of roll-call voting.…”

A Non-Gendered Lens? Media, Voters, and Female Candidates in Contemporary Congressional Elections

“…Of course, the role the sex of a legislator plays in shaping policy or affecting leadership styles is substantially constrained by party. As a result, the evidence for gender differences in substantive representation has waned over time; see also Frederick 2009;Schwindt-Bayer and Corbetta 2004. As Tracy Osborn (2012) demonstrates in her 50-state analysis of state legislative roll call data, legislators' party identities affect the alternatives they present and the policy agendas they create.…”