Female Political Representation and Violence Against Women: Evidence from Brazil

Abstract

This paper studies the effect of female political representation on violence against women. Using a Regression Discontinuity design for close mayoral elections between female and male candidates in Brazil, we find that electing female mayors leads to a reduction in episodes of gender violence. The effect is particularly strong when focusing on incidents of domestic violence, when the aggressor is the ex-husband/boyfriend, and when victims experienced sexual violence. The evidence suggests that female mayors might implement different policies from male mayors and therefore contribute to reduce gender violence.

Keywords: gender, political economy, elections, violence

JEL Classification: D72, J16, P16, I18, H75, K42