Since the turn of the millennium, studies have demonstrated a relationship between gender and corruption, finding that in countries where female political participation is higher, indicators of corruption are lower. This thesis approaches this debate in two ways, quantitatively and qualitatively. A multivariate regression analysis updates data for the year 2015 and incorporates underexplored institutional variables. Results show that the proportion of women in politics is positively and significantly correlated with reduced corruption, even when controlling for these institutional variables. The findings from this analysis are applied to a focused comparison of two countries, Rwanda and Haiti, which have very different female representation and corruption outcomes, despite the presence of a very similar institution, a 30 percent legislated gender quota. Using feminist institutionalism as a theoretical guide for the analysis, this thesis demonstrates that institutions such as democracy and auditing standards moderate the relationship between female representation and corruption outcomes. On that basis, it concludes that while increasing female participation in politics can modestly contribute to reducing corruption, linking female participation to strengthening democratic governance and institutionalizing accountability can further reduce corruption in some developing country contexts.

This dissertation project examines the rhetorical performances of women who hold or have held the highest office of a nation-state. Currently, only 20 women are in such positions of political national leadership. This project asks how these women rhetorically perform--discursively, visually, and through embodied performance--their positions of power and how they are read, time again, against and with other women who have held similar positions in different geopolitical locations. Specifically, I ask how these rhetorical performances open up and/or close down the potential to confront gendered expectations of leadership. I argue that a "woman world leader" is not just a head of state, but also a symbolic heterodoxy that interrupts and reaffirms the doxa of the nation-state as an eternal structure. I analyze three rhetorical situations--autobiographies, the Council of Women World Leaders, and the nickname of "Iron Lady,"--in order to conclude that woman world leaders, as a discourse, can limit the potential for ethical rhetorical action of embodied women as world leaders. I link the function of the discourse of women world leaders to that of the "US presidency," as established by Campbell and Jamieson, in that it creates a transnational tradition of women as leaders. By researching women as world leaders, a subject of curiosity following the 2008 US Presidential campaigns, this project contributes to popular and academic discussions of power, identity, and transnational political participation at the foundation of which are writing, rhetoric, and education.

This study offers a case study of women’s political participation and representation in pro-Kurdish politics in Turkey since 1990s. Kurdish women have been double oppressed in Turkey due to both their ethnic identity and gender identity. They have been mobilized by the Kurdish national movement for the Kurdish national cause and joined both Kurdish armed and political struggles from the early 1990s. From the foundation of the first pro-Kurdish political party, the People’s Labour Party [Halkın Emek Partisi- HEP] in 1990, Kurdish women have actively been involved in pro- Kurdish party politics. However, the pro-Kurdish party failed in promoting egalitarian gender values, policies and supporting women’s inclusion in decision-making until the end of 1990s except the election of the first Kurdish woman deputy, Leyla Zana in 1991. Women’s participation and representation in pro-Kurdish party politics have significantly advanced numerically since 1990s. In contrast to the general picture of women’s underrepresentation in Turkey’s politics, the proportion of Kurdish women representatives has been increasing in representation bodies. Therefore, this research aims to examine the Kurdish case through conducting an intensive field research in order to explain the reasons and factors behind these developments. This research is an empirical case study, primarily based on qualitative analysis of face-to-face in-depth semi-structured interviews of female political activists and participant observations held during field research. On the basis of empirical data gathered from field research and an analysis of pro-Kurdish party characteristics, its gender policies and female political activists’ roles in representation bodies, this study argues that the pro-Kurdish politics has gradually been feminizing which refers to an increase in women’s both descriptive and substantive representation since the beginning of 2000s. The changes and developments in terms of women’s representation in pro-Kurdish politics are framed as a process of feminization; which can simply be defined as a process for women to be included in political decision-making both in numbers and ideas for representing women’s interests. In this regard, this thesis searches for answers for two essential questions: how has the pro-Kurdish party politics been feminized and what difference has been made in pro-Kurdish politics since women are increasingly taking part in decision-making processes. Thus, this study assesses whether descriptive representation links to women's substantive representation in pro-Kurdish politics. The examination of Kurdish women’s representation based on the feminizing politics approach does not only theoretically contribute to broaden the scope of feminizing politics but it also broadens the scope of the concepts of descriptive and substantive representation included in this approach. In this respect, this thesis will demonstrate that the analysis of the Kurdish women case in the context of feminizing politics presents several insights about the women‘s political representation and put forth how political parties and actors strategically interact in changing women‘s political representation.

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This thesis is a study of selected themes in feminist rethinkings of the political. It explores connections between specific interpretations of the meanings and boundaries of the political, the problems of exclusion and the imagination of non-exclusionary alternatives. It traces, and responds to, shifts in these interconnected concerns that have transpired over the last three decades as feminists in western liberal democracies have moved from a preoccupation with gendered oppression, to relations of identity and difference more broadly conceived. The contrasting perspectives of Moira Gatens and Anne Phillips on political exclusion and their preferred political futures are discussed. Gatens' preferred future is a 'polymorphous, polyvocal and polyvalent body politic' but the institutional forms of that polity and its relation to actually existing liberal democracy are uncertain. Phillips apparently has more modest aspirations; for increased political presence for the politically marginalised (especially women); and for a revitalisation of the deliberative component of democracy. Although Phillips appears to hold the trump card of immediate practical relevance, the thesis questions this assumption. It argues that feminist analysis can only benefit from increased conversation between such divergent feminist responses to the problem of political exclusion. But further, it concludes that the least 'practical' may sometimes be the most important components of feminist rethinkings of the political / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Since women's entry into the workforce has constituted such a tremendous social change, its political consequences deserve further study. This investigation uses the 1977 Quality of Life Survey to assess the political impact of both objective and subjective features of women's work on political involvement. / Results demonstrate that mere employment fails to politicize women, but either higher salaries or professional positions can act as political catalysts. In addition, jobs that are perceived to be "good", or that possess a number of positive qualities, may also be politically beneficial. Manual labor, on the other hand, actually discourages political involvement, and unions are not politically helpful. / More research should be conducted into the family context which contributes to the "double burden" of working women (the dual set of responsibilities shouldered by women--at home and on the job). Furthermore, the still limited political and employment opportunities realistically available to women merit greater scholarly attention.

This thesis deals with the political participation of Muslim women since the colonial period into the New Order period. It is a study of the Indonesian women's movement in its different trends: the roles of women in gaining and defending Indonesian independence as well as in Indonesia's politics in the Liberal Democracy, Guided Democracy, and New Order periods. It investigates the reasons for the relatively limited participation of women in politics. This low level of political participation is indicated by the ratio of women membership in the House of People's Representatives (DPR, Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat), in the Consultative Assembly (MPR, Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat), and in the central boards of political organizations. This thesis also focuses on the political career and discourse of Aisyah Aminy, and examines her involvement as a case study. The prominence of Aisyah Aminy lies in her ability to transcend the barriers which usually obstruct Muslim women from getting involved in politics.

Canada's three major political parties have lamented the lack of women seeking candidacy for national office. Yet few organizational efforts have been used to increase the number of women candidates and Members of Parliament. Given the important role political parties play in mediating and structuring legislative candidacies, the candidate selection process and party practices can act as barriers to female political aspirants, both at the nomination and election stages. This thesis analyzes both aggregate election data and the results of a systematic, constituency level, survey of the nomination processes of the New Democratic, Liberal and Progressive Conservative parties conducted at the time of the 1988 general election. The thesis finds that much of the explanation for lack of representation can be found in the practice of all three parties to nominate disproportionate numbers of women candidates in ridings where they have little chance of success. Limited competition for nominations and the practice of all parties not to challenge incumbents who seek reselection also benefit women candidates less than they do their male counterparts. This thesis argues that use of structures such as selection committees and encouragement from national party officials for local associations to nominate women can have a positive impact on the number of women who seek political candidacy. / Arts, Faculty of / Political Science, Department of / Graduate

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This thesis compared the status of women's political participation in Cameroon and South Africa through an assessment conducted against the backdrop key of international, regional and national human rights standards. The aim of this thesis was not only, to be conscious of women's absence in politics, but to also take steps to redefine sound strategies to implement gender equality in terms of the political participation of women on the part of governments.