Introduction

The CMB Data in Action series highlights published work that uses the Canadian Municipal Barometer survey data. The focus for this post is Women’s Representation in Canadian Municipalities by Alexandra Artiles, Susan Franceschet, Jack Lucas, Sandra Breux, and Meagan Cloutier.

The article examines women’s representation in Canadian municipal governments and investigates how factors such as district type, council size, urbanity, women’s workforce participation, and voter ideology shape the proportion of women elected as councillors and mayors. Drawing on an original cross-sectional dataset on women’s representation covering 22,333 elected positions across 3,363 municipalities that includes the Canadian Municipal Barometer politician survey, they find that urban municipalities and those using at-large or hybrid electoral systems tend to elect more women, while more conservative municipalities are associated with lower levels of women’s representation. Artiles et al. acknowledge that some barriers to women’s political representation (e.g., the socio-economic and ideological context) are slow to change, institutional reforms such as changing electoral rules (e.g., moving from single-member to multi-member districts) can create more immediate improvements. They also highlight that changes to the electoral rules can help women reach higher levels of elected office such as mayor.

We recently caught up with Dr. Alexanda Artiles to learn more about the research and its real-world applications.

How did the idea for this article come about?

As a fifth-year PhD student, I was on a Fulbright scholarship at the University of Ottawa in Ontario. My mentor, Dr. Jennifer Wallner, had connected me with Dr. Jack Lucas because of my interest in fielding a survey through the Canadian Municipal Barometer. During that conversation, we realized our mutual interest in research on women’s representation in local government! Jack had already brainstormed this project idea, but was looking for some collaborators. I was excited to join in!

What are the main takeaways you hope readers remember from your article?  

The main takeaway should be what political and institutional factors impact women’s representation in local government, specifically as city councillors and mayors. Typically, more metropolitan areas, as well as areas with at-large and hybrid elections, tend to elect more women. Perhaps unsurprisingly, more conservative areas tend to elect fewer women.

Did any of the results surprise you or challenge your expectations going into the project? 

One surprise was our null findings for women’s labor force participation. Much of the existing literature finds a positive correlation between women’s labor force participation and women’s representation. Usually, women in the workforce represents more modern gender roles, and affords women additional social and economic resources to pursue elected office.

Are there real-world developments that have made your findings more relevant or timely since publication?  

Recently, there have been efforts across Canadian municipalities to recruit and support female candidates. For example, “She Leads” in Alberta and Ontario continue to raise public awareness and pressure governments to make municipal politics more accessible to women. These efforts align with our findings about institutional and ideological barriers to women’s representation, and make this research a useful guide for policymakers and advocates.

What audiences do you hope will read and engage with your article?

Broadly, I would argue that our article speaks to women from all walks of life who have political ambitions. However, I am especially hopeful that policy stakeholders take these findings into account. Given that our data is open-access, my hope is that academics and stakeholders alike can continue to evaluate what drives women’s political representation or lack thereof.

Are there any follow-up studies or projects that you’re planning?

Although there is not a direct follow-up planned, I am continuing my work on women’s representation. One project I am excited about is a collaboration with Dr. Kevin Fahey (University of Nottingham), Dr. Alixandra Yanus (High Point University), and Dr. Nicholas Pyeatt (Pennsylvania State University – Altoona). Here, we explore which electoral contexts are the most conducive to women running for statewide executive offices in the U.S. To do so, we utilize a women-friendliness index containing Census data on racial, socioeconomic, and cultural factors that predict voters’ willingness to support female candidates.