Explaining the gender gap in voting using feminist consciousness theory

Abstract

Previous research shows that women are more likely to vote Democrat than men. Using the 2000 Middletown Area Survey this paper tests the Feminist Consciousness Theory as a possible explanation for the gender gap in voting. Results indicate that women in the study voted more Democrat than men. Those who scored higher on the NonTraditional Gender Role Ideology scale, the Support for Gender Equality Scale and who said that they were a feminist were more likely to vote Democrat. Women were more likely to support gender equality and identify as being a feminist than were men. This means that because women are more likely to have a feminist conscious they are more likely to vote Democrat.