The gendered nature of ethnic minority candidate nomination: An analysis of the moderating role of district diversity, party affiliation and ethnic minorities’ visibility

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper investigates when party selectors prefer ethnic minority female over male candidates on their lists. We argue that the two competing strategies parties can follow (gaining the ethnic vote (‘ethnic community’ argument) versus not scaring ethnic majority voters (‘deterrence’ argument)) are dependent upon party ideology, district diversity and ethnic minorities’ visibility. Focusing on the 2018 local elections in Flanders (Belgium), we find that female Turkish/Maghrebi (i.e., visible ethnic minority) candidates outnumber their male counterparts in less diverse districts and rightist parties, whereas an opposite picture emerges in more diverse districts and leftist parties. Surprisingly, however, female candidates with less visible minority backgrounds outnumber their male counterparts in all contexts. These results imply a confirmation of the ‘ethnic community argument’, while casting doubts on the ‘deterrence’ argument. Taken together, our findings clearly highlight the conditionality of the selection of ethnic minority male versus female candidates in Proportional Representation list-systems.