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Why Did Women Vote for Donald Trump?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 March 2018

Mark Setzler  and
Alixandra B. Yanus
Mark Setzler
Affiliation:
High Point University
Alixandra B. Yanus
Affiliation:
High Point University
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Abstract

Popular accounts of the 2016 presidential election attribute Donald Trump’s victory to the mobilization of angry white men seeking to restore traditional values and social roles. Whereas a majority of Trump voters were male, more than 40% of women who went to the polls on Election Day also supported him. This analysis explores the motivations of these women, asking how partisanship, demographics, and beliefs motivated their vote choice. We found that, although party affiliation was an important predictor of both women’s and men’s vote choice, sexism and racial resentment had a greater influence on voters of both genders. Moreover, the influence of these biases was similar for women and men.

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PS: Political Science & Politics , Volume 51 , Issue 3 , July 2018 , pp. 523 - 527
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 2018 

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