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Urban and Rural Ridings and Women in Provincial Politics in Canada: A Research Note on Female MLAs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 November 2009

Gary F. Moncrief  and
Joel A. Thompson
Gary F. Moncrief
Affiliation:
Boise State University
Joel A. Thompson
Affiliation:
Appalachian State University
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Abstract

Several previous studies have noted that women constitute a relatively small proportion of provincial legislators in Canada. Numerous explanations for this phenomenon exist, most of which are identified clearly by Brodie, Bashevkin, Burt and others. In this research note, the authors examine the relationship between the proportion of female legislators and the urban/rural nature of the electoral district. They find that there is a distinct difference in the proportion of female legislators who represent urban districts compared to rural districts. This urban-rural disparity exists regardless of political party affiliation. Moreover, the gap appears to be widening over time.

Résumé

Plusieurs études précédentes ont constaté que les femmes constituent une proportion assez faible des législateurs des provinces du Canada. De nombreuses explications de ce phénomène existent, la plupart d'entre elles ont été clairement identifiées par Brodie, Bashevkin, Burt et d'autres. Dans cette note de recherche, les auteurs examinant la relation entre la proportion des législateurs de sexe féminin et la nature urbaine ou rurale de la circonscription électorale. En les comparant, les auteurs confirment une différence nette entre la part des législatrices représentant des circonscriptions urbaines et celle des législatrices des circonscriptions rurales. Cette disparité urbaine/rurale existe sans tenir compte de l'appartenance à un parti politique. De plus, la différence paraît s'accentuer avec les années.

Type
Note
Information
Canadian Journal of Political Science/Revue canadienne de science politique , Volume 24 , Issue 4 , December 1991 , pp. 831 - 837
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Political Science Association (l'Association canadienne de science politique) and/et la Société québécoise de science politique 1991

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References

1 Brodie, Janine, Women and Politics in Canada (Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1985), 117Google Scholar.

2 See, for example, ibid.; Bashevkin, Sylvia, Toeing the Lines (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1985)Google Scholar; Melissa Haussman, “Party Workhorses but Not Party Animals,” paper presented at the 1990 annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, San Francisco; Clarke, Harold D. and Komberg, Allan, “Moving Up the Political Escalator: Women Party Officials in the United States and Canada,” Journal of Politics 41 (1979), 442–477.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

3 Brodie, Women and Politics in Canada, esp. chap. 1.

4 See, for example, Rule, Wilma, “Electoral Systems, Contextual Factors and Women's Opportunity for Election to Parliament in Twenty-Three Democracies,” Western Political Quarterly 40 (1987), 477–498CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Welch, Susan and Studlar, Donley, “Multimember Districts and the Representation of Women: Evidence from Britain and the United States,” Journal of Politics 52 (1990), 391–412CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Moncrief, Gary and Thompson, Joel, “Electoral Structure and State Legislative Representation,” Journal of PoliticsGoogle Scholar, forthcoming; and Darcy, Robert, Welch, Susan and Clark, Janet, Women, Elections, and Representation (New York: Longman, 1987), 109–131.Google Scholar

5 Haussman, “Party Workhorses,” 18.

6 Ibid.

7 See Moncrief and Thompson, “Electoral Structure and State Legislative Representation.”

8 Normandin, Pierre G., ed., Canadian Parliamentary Guide, 1988 (Kanata, Ontario: Normandin, 1988).Google Scholar

9 Brodie, Women and Politics in Canada, 3.

10 In the US study, we defined “urban” as any district contained wholly or partially within a Standard Metropolitan Area. The 50,000 population figure is an integral part of the SMA definition, and was chosen as the best way to operationalize “urban” for the Canadian ridings.

11 There is also a relationship between ideology of the political party and the propensity to elect female members. In the 1988 data, for example, 16.2 per cent of the New Democratic party members were female, while only 8.2 percent of the Conservative members were female. It is also the case that the NDP tends to be stronger in urban areas, and the Conservative party in rural ridings. One might argue, then, that the “urban connection” is really just a function of political party strength. The essential point, however, is that within each party, women fare better in urban than rural ridings. For the 1988 data, for example, 12.7 per cent of the urban ridings electing Conservatives were held by women; only 6.5 per cent of the rural ridings electing Conservatives were held by women. The figures for the other parties (urban percentage held by women, rural percentage held by women) were Liberal (19,3%; 7.7%); NDP (22.8%; 2.6%); Social Credit (19.0%; 0%); Parti Quebecois (27.3%; 0%).

This phenomenon also holds true for the three recent elections we tested. In the 1990 Ontario election, women represented the following proportions of urban and rural ridings held by each party: Conservative (30%; 0%); Liberal (20%; 9.1%); NDP (30.6%; 16%). In the 1989 Alberta election, the figures were Conservative (26.3%; 7.1%); Liberal (28.6%; 0%); NDP (23.8%; 0%). In the 1990 Manitoba case, the proportions were Conservative (35.7%; 0%); Liberal (14.2%; 0%), NDP (33.3%; 12.5%). In each case, for each party, women are more likely to represent urban than rural ridings.

12 At the time of writing, these were the 1989 Alberta and 1990 Ontario and Manitoba elections.

13 Recent events involving the NDPare suggestive of this relationship. In June 1991 the NDP initiated a plan with a goal eventually to ensure that 50 per cent of all NDP nominees forfederal legislative seats are female. Some of the provincial NDPorganizations said they would not abide by the policy. In British Columbia, one male MP from the NDP called the proposal an “urban middle-class yuppie” plan to exert their will over the rural areas. See “B.C. New Democrats Won't Seek Female Candidate Parity” and “NDP Policy to Impose More Female Candidates Defended,” Vancouver Sun, June 12. 1991, Bl and A12.

14 For British Columbia, see Re Di.xon and the Attorney General of British Columbia, Vancouver Registry, A860246, June 2, 1989. For a discussion of the history of redistribution in British Columbia see Ruff, Norman J., “The Cat and Mouse Politics of Redistribution: Fairand Effective Representation in British Columbia,” B.C. Studies 87 (Autumn 1990), 48–84Google Scholar. The Saskatchewan case is Re Constitutional Questions Act, Saskatchewan Judgements: 1991 S.J. No. Ill (C.A. No. 639). The case was overturned on appeal by the Supreme Court of Canada on June 6, 1991. See The Attorney General for Saskatchewan v. Roger Carter (1991 S.C.J. No. 46).