Women’s Political Participation in the Province of Batangas

Abstract

The study focused on women’s participation in electoral politics in the province of Batangas, their priority programs, the factors that impede their participation and the platform for action that Lyceum of the Philippines University-Batangas can propose to help increase women’s political participation in the province. Descriptive-correlational method was employed utilizing convenient sampling. Survey questionnaire and interview was utilized in data gathering. Respondents of the study are women politicians who won in the 2007 local election. Findings revealed that majority of women politician’s priority is health. They were recruited by political parties and their political experience is by being councilors in their respective areas. They believe that support of the community, family and personality are the factors for winning. Lack of financial resources and the type of electoral system as well as the lack of quota reservations are the socio-economic factors that impede women’s participation. On the other hand, the cultural and institutional factors include lack of party support including money and other resources and the lack of coordination and support from women’s organization and other NGO’s, how women are portrayed in media is believe to be the ideological and psychological factors that impede women’s participation in politics. Keywords - feminism, politics, election