Gender and Sexual Diversity in Provincial Election Campaigns

Canadian Political Science Review Vol. 9, No. 1, 2015, 177-192 Gender and Sexual Diversity in Provincial Election Campaigns Joanna Everitt Department of History and Politics, University of New Brunswick – Saint John – Email address: [email protected] Abstract: Recent elections have resulted in women holding over one quarter of provincial legislative seats, with women in urban and Western Canada seeing greater success. A much smaller proportion of seats are held by lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) politicians, although they are found in similar regions. This article identifies factors such as stronger parties of the left, less traditional social and economic structures, and a greater attention to diversity in more populous urban centers as attributing to these results for both female and LGB candidates. Keywords: Female Politicians, LGB Politicians, Provincial Elections Résumé: Les élections récentes ont abouti à des femmes tenant plus d'un quart des sièges législatives provinciaux, avec les femmes dans les milieux urbains et de l'Ouest du Canada voyant plus de succès. Une proportion beaucoup plus faible de sièges sont occupés par les politiciens lesbiennes, gays et bisexuels (LGB), bien qu'ils se trouvent dans des régions semblables. Cet article identifie les facteurs tel que le renforcement des partis de gauche, les structures sociales et économiques moins traditionnelles, et une plus grande attention à la diversité dans les centres urbains comme attribuant à ces résultats pour les femmes et candidats LGB. Mots-clés: Femmes politiques, politiciens LGB, Élections provinciales 177 Canadian Political Science Review Vol. 9, No. 1, 2015, 177-192 Theoretical Framework focussing mostly on individual politicians. David Rayside (1998) provided a case In the early Fall of 2013 six out of study of the experiences of Canada’s first thirteen of Canada’s provinces and out male politician, Svend Robinson, and territories were headed by female Everitt and Camp (2009a, 2009b) premiers, one of whom was a lesbian. examined New Brunswick’s Allison This fact might have led one to conclude Brewer, Canada’s first lesbian party that gender and sexual diversity is no leader. Only Everitt and Camp (2014) longer an issue in provincial politics if have attempted to provide a were not the case that merely one year comprehensive examination of the later only two of these women remained experiences of LGB politicians. Part of the in office. This suggests that although reason for this is that LGB candidates change has occurred in the legislative have only openly run in provincial politics assemblies across the country there is since 1979, and the numbers who have still some distance to go before women run have not been great, nor have they and lesbians, gays, or bisexuals in Canada been particularly successful. However, reach equality of political representation. more recent election campaigns suggest While recent elections have seen slight that patterns are changing as more out increases in the number of women candidates are running for office and elected to provincial office, and now over winning. This article will show that one-quarter of the seats in provincial factors similar to those accounting for the legislative bodies are held by women, this success of female candidates can also proportion varies from one part of the explain the success of LGB candidates in country to another. Urban and Western Canadian provincial elections. Canada typically have a higher proportion Several of the primary reasons of successful female and lesbian, gay, or presented to explain women’s political bisexual (LGB) candidates1 than the more involvement in election campaigns have rural and Eastern provinces. This article to do with “supply side” explanations outlines the recent accomplishments of (such as gendered social roles and female and LGB candidates in provincial responsibilities, socialization and the lack elections and identifies the factors that of female role models), resource factors are often attributed to their success. (including more limited finances and While there is an extensive political networks) and the tendency for literature examining women’s electoral women to self-select themselves out of experiences in Canada, much of it has running for office due to a sense that their focused on national politics (Bashevkin, party would not be willing to run a female 1993; Brodie, 1985; Erickson, 1991). The candidate. In addition to these arguments, few exceptions have tended to researchers on this topic frequently point concentrate on specific provinces and to systemic or “demand side” factors such their experiences with little attempt to as provincial or regional political cultures highlight common experiences across the that are unwelcome to women, gate regions of the country (an exception is keepers within the parties that either Trimble, Arscott, and Tremblay, 2013). ignore potential female candidates in The literature on LGB politicians on the their recruitment efforts or actively make other hand is almost non-existent it difficult for them to win their party’s 178 Canadian Political Science Review Vol. 9, No. 1, 2015, 177-192 nomination, and the tendency of they can also be discouraging if the incumbents to be male. Finally, women’s women who are elected are treated electoral success can be related to poorly by their parties or receive media structural factors such as the political coverage that is belittling or sexist success of parties of the left which are (Gidengil and Everitt, 1999, 2000, 2003a, typically more open to female candidates, 2003b; Trimble and Everitt, 2010; individual party rules governing Trimble and Sampert, 2003). Thus, the candidate recruitment, and the limiting resignation of Allison Redford as Premier impact of the first past the post electoral of Alberta in early 2013 due to charges of system. These explanations serve at both inappropriate use of the resources of the the national and provincial level and have office of the Premier or the severe been argued to also have some impact on criticisms of Premiers Christy Clark, the success of LGB candidates (see Everitt Pauline Marios or Kathy Dunderdale that and Camp, 2014). led to hotly contested elections or their While in the past, arguments that resignation as party leader may lead some linked women’s absence from politics to potential candidates to hold off throwing their gender roles and responsibilities their names into the ring. This may be may have been true, for the most part this part of the reason that studies regularly is no longer the case today. Women are show that women are less likely to increasingly achieving similar levels of consider running for politics than men education and occupational status as their (Lawless and Fox, 2010). male counterparts. While women with Additional “supply side” factors young children are still less likely to run include the fact that women frequently for public office than men with young lack the financial and political resources children, this only delays their entry, not to successfully compete for winnable prohibits it (Praud, 2013: 69). However, ridings. Women continue to make less despite these expectations women remain money than men and are often employed notably under-represented in political in fields such as education, health care or life, comprising less than one-third of social work that are difficulty to step political candidates in Canada and on away from during election campaigns and average only about one-quarter of elected difficult to return to after one or two office holders. This indicates that other terms in office. These fields may also issues are at play in determining their limit their access to the political networks electoral engagement. which are necessary to challenge and win Role model arguments propose party nominations in ridings where a that in areas where there are more party has the potential to win. As a result, females running for office it is easier for women often find themselves recruited other women to consider political life as a and selected to run in ridings where the legitimate option. This would suggest competition for the nomination is less that with several women having led intense and the chance of winning less provincial governments, the number of secure (Everitt, 2013; Thomas and Bodet, female candidates would increase. 2013). And while complaints of “dirty However, while role models can be tricks” such as changing the date or important to helping women to see location of a nomination meeting are not politics as a potential career possibility, as likely to be heard as frequently today 179 Canadian Political Science Review Vol. 9, No. 1, 2015, 177-192 as they were in the past (Bashevkin, women into their party structures than 1993: 84; Brodie, 1985: 111), there still more centrist or right-wing parties stories of women who have met with (Bashevkin, 1993: 108; Trimble et al., resistance from their parties when they 2013: 296). As a result, New Democratic have sought their riding’s nomination. Parties have typically nominated and run Such experiences may make other women more female candidates than other more hesitant to step forward to become parties. Furthermore, the number of their party’s standard bearer. women elected to office has generally This leads to the “demand side” been higher in parts of the country where factors that have been identified to the NDP have been successful and lower account for women’s lower levels of in those provinces where it has been less participation in electoral politics. Just as successful (Studlar and Matland, 1996). women may be less willing to offer Incumbency is a further factor themselves as candidates, parties may be limiting in the success of female less willing to seek them out due to beliefs politicians. Once elected, incumbent that the electorate is not ready to elect a candidates have a greater chance of being woman, or that the economic and cultural re-elected than new and challenging make up of a riding would be better candidates.

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