Abstract

This research project analyzes violence experienced by local women politicians in the US, a largely unexplored topic, through an intersectional lens. While past US-based studies have focused on women politicians at the state or national level, international research has shown that women politicians at the local level may be even more vulnerable than those in higher offices because of closer proximity to their constituents and a lack of protection. This project also attempts to explore different kinds of violence, including physical and online attacks, considering the ever-increasing role of social media platforms like Twitter in perpetuating online gender-based violence. Taking an intersectional approach, the differences in the experiences of white women and women of color are highlighted, showcasing the heightened vulnerability of women of color in politics. The results of a survey taken by a sample of women politicians in New Jersey and information from subsequent interviews provides the data used in the project. This project can pave the way for further research regarding local women politicians in the US, particularly women of color in local politics, and indicate which groups are most vulnerable to which kinds of violence. By determining the levels of local women politicians’ vulnerability to violence, necessary measures of protection can be taken to prevent incidents from recurring, which could ultimately impact the representation of women in local US political offices.

Research Questions

1. What forms of violence and harassment do women city councilors experience in connection with their participation in local politics?
2. How do the forms, frequency, and perceived severity of violence and harassment differ between women city councilors of color and white women city councilors?
3. How are experiences of violence and harassment associated with women city councilors' interest in seeking higher elected office?
4. How do women city councilors respond to and cope with experiences of violence and harassment encountered in the course of their political service?

Background

There is increasing recognition that women in politics face disproportionate levels of violence in comparison to their male counterparts, with the proliferation of studies documenting their experiences around the world. Primarily, scholarship focuses on the experiences of women at the highest levels of leadership—in the US, this includes individuals like Kamala Harris and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Existing research on women politicians indicates that women with multiple marginalized identities—i.e., women of color—face violence at higher rates than white women, and that the types of violence and harassment they experience tend to differ by race. Though it is becoming increasingly clear that women at higher levels of government face near-constant harassment, there is a lack of information about similar experiences of women serving at lower levels of government, particularly at the local and city level. Members of local government are in a particularly vulnerable position, as their participation in the communities they serve makes them easily accessible to their opponents but largely unprotected by security measures that are afforded to higher-ranking officials. With this study, we hope to provide insight into the experiences of local women politicians and begin to trace the potential nuances of the experiences of women of color.

Methodology

Women city councilors in New Jersey were asked to respond to a short survey that asked whether they had experienced various forms of harassment during their time in office. The questions spanned types of harassment and violence, including sexist and racist remarks, the spread of disinformation through writing or images, and physical violence. In addition to examining the content of the harassment, the city councilors were asked to indicate the perpetrators of the harassment and their relationship to them (for example, if the perpetrators shared their political, racial, and gender identity). The survey was not open-ended, but the respondents had the opportunity to elaborate on their experiences if they consented to being contacted for an interview via Zoom. The survey provided the data that was used to calculate the prevalence of violence experienced by the women and the differences of the prevalence of each kind of attack between white women and women of color. The statistical significance of the calculated percentages was determined through t-tests. 

Potential Impact

This study intends to shed light on the experiences of women politicians serving at local levels of government. Because of the low-profile nature of their position, city councilors are not generally assumed to be at great risk of violence or in need of specialized security measures. This assumption has also resulted in the lack of information about the sexualized and racialized experiences of local women politicians. It is necessary to examine the reality of the experiences of women politicians serving in local office in order to understand the true nature of their experiences, particularly the nature of their experiences with harassment and violence. Serving in local government can often be a gateway to progressing further into a career in public service, so it is crucial to the health of the democratic process to pay attention to the potential risks of engaging with politics at a local level, and to address those risks as needed. It is likely that experiences of violence or threats of violence at a low level of government would create barriers to entry for higher offices. Particularly in a time when misogynistic rhetoric is increasing rapidly in the United States, we must be attentive to the experiences of women public servants—for the sake of individual safety and the safety of our democracy.