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Tag: Violence against women in politics

  • Online violence against women in politics: What shapes political party responses totechnology-facilitated gender-based violence?

    Online violence against women in politics: What shapes political party responses totechnology-facilitated gender-based violence?

    Michalko (2026) explores how democracy-strenghthening programs can better help political parties respond to technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV).

    This phenomenom has gronw into a major worldwide dranger to democracy, weakening political representation for women as well as LGBTIQ+ communities and eroding rights protections for everyone. Political institutions have been slow to confront this reality. While governments in places like Australia, the United Kingdom, and the European Union have recently begun regulating online spaces and tech platforms, and parliament have stablished code of conduct, reporting systems, and support for victim-survivors, political parties have received far less focus in research and practice. However, party members, affiliates, and elected leaders frequently carry out TFGBV against political competitors as well as women within their own organizations. Because political parties serve as vital conduits for women’s political involvement, they hold a central responsibility to confront this abuse within their ranks. Mihalko provides guidance for democracy practitioners to assist parties in mounting effective responses, emphasizing that this work is increasingly urgent as funding for gender equality faces cuts and threats from anti-gender and gender-restrictive actors continue to mount.

    Learn more about this research report here:

    Michalko, J. (2026) Online violence against women in politics: what shapes political party responses to technology-facilitated gender-based violence? ODI Global Report. London: ALIGN/ODI Global. www.alignplatform.org/resources/report-online-violenceagainst-women-in-politics

  • Compliant Women, Constitutive Violence: Rethinking the VAWIP Counterfactual

    Compliant Women, Constitutive Violence: Rethinking the VAWIP Counterfactual

    How has literature broadened our understanding of violence against women in politics? Kuteleva (2026) tracks how research has expanded from physical violence to encompass symbolic harm and everyday phychological abuse.

    Kuteleva (2026) highlights that literatue on violence againsts women in politics (VAWIP) has provided vital insights into how gender drives political exclusion. Foundational research by Krook and Restrepo Sanín (2016; 2020) first framed VAWIP as a type of hate crime and systemic backlash against women involving in political roles. Krook (2022) later built upon this foundation to address symbolic and semiotic damage, broadening the scope beyond physical agression to show representational tactics are used to delegitimize female politicians. Furthermore, an edited collection by Bjarnegård and Zetterberg (2023) pushes the concept even wider, demonstrating that gender-based political violence unfolds across a wide spectrum of contexts along a continuum connecting psychological and physical harm, rather that being restricted to formal election cycles or legislative halls.

    Learn more about this article here:

    Kuteleva, A. (2026). Compliant Women, Constitutive Violence: Rethinking the VAWIP Counterfactual. Politics & Gender, 22(3), 873–878. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1743923X26101020

  • Violence Against Feminist Advocates: Political Violence and Anti-Gender Politics

    Violence Against Feminist Advocates: Political Violence and Anti-Gender Politics

    How does political violence target women’s activism? Reboiro-Río and Rodó-Zárate (2026) examine how violence against women in politics and activist spaces functions as a tool to discipline, silence and push women out of public life.

    The research focused on violence against women in politics (VAWIP) alongside studies on women activist has made vital contributions by defining violence as gender-based issue aimed at women for participating in politics. Through these frameworks, violence serves to punish, silence, or remove women from political and public participation altogether.

    In parallel with these insights, an expanding body of scholarship examines anti-gender politics as an organized, transnational political project, focusing closely on the key actors involved, their surrounding discourses, and their strategic methods.

    Learn more about this article here:

    Reboiro-Río, U., & Rodó-Zárate, M. (2026). Violence Against Feminist Advocates: Political Violence and Anti-Gender Politics. Politics & Gender, 22(3), 859–867. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1743923X26101044

  • An Early Leak in the Pipeline – Online Abuse as a Barrier for Young Women’s Political Engagement

    An Early Leak in the Pipeline – Online Abuse as a Barrier for Young Women’s Political Engagement

    Does online abuse prevent young women from entering politics? Höhmann, Latteier, and Bailer (2025) show that gender-targeted online harassment pushes young women to leave political work before their careers even start.

    The authors examine how often online abuse happens on social media, what form it takes, and how it shapes the decision to pursue a political path among young party members. Drawing on an original survey of youth party members in Switzerland, their findings point to clear gender differences in both the type and the consequences of this abuse. Young women are significantly more likely to be attacked specifically because of their gender. In addition, female members are more likely to report that their personal experiences with social media abuse create real obstacles to their political work and serve as a direct reason to step down. Ultimately, Höhmann, Latteier, and Bailer conclude that online abuse discourages many young women from running for office before their political journeys have even begun.

    Learn more about this article here:

    Höhmann, D., Latteier, T., & Bailer, S. (2025). An Early Leak in the Pipeline – Online Abuse as a Barrier for Young Women’s Political Engagement. Journal of Women, Politics & Policy, 46(4), 300–319. https://doi.org/10.1080/1554477X.2025.2552573

  • Gender and Violence against Political Candidates: Lessons from Sri Lanka

    Gender and Violence against Political Candidates: Lessons from Sri Lanka

    Does election violence target women differently than men? Bjarnegård, Håkansson, and Zetterberg (2022) find that while male and female candidates in Sri Lanka face similar overall levels of violence, women experience more sexual intimidation.

    As the authors explain, an emerging body of research highlights the broad forms of violence women encounter when entering political life. Within this scholarship, two main interpretations exist: one views this violence as primarily driven by gender, where women are targeted simply because they are women, while the other sees it as a routine political tactic directed at candidates of any sex. However, because researchers have lacked large-scale, systematic comparisons of male and female candidates, little is known about how a candidate’s sex actually shapes their exposure to election-related violence.

    To address this gap, Bjarnegård, Håkansson, and Zetterberg examined original survey data from 197 male and female candidates in Sri Lanka’s 2018 local elections. Sri Lanka serves as a fitting case because it is a postconflict country with widespread political violence and a rapid rise in women candidates following the adoption of gender quotas. Ultimately, the authors observed broad similarities in the overall violence experienced by men and women, suggesting that violence often operates as part of a wider political practice. At the same time, women were exposed to forms of intimidation of a sexual nature far more often than men, demonstrating the critical need for gender-sensitive approaches to studying election violence.

    Learn more about this article here:

    Bjarnegård, E., Håkansson, S., & Zetterberg, P. (2022). Gender and Violence against Political Candidates: Lessons from Sri Lanka. Politics & Gender, 18(1), 33–61. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1743923X20000471