Members Of Parliament Research Articles

Free to represent you and me: Gender attitudes and women's share of parliament, 1995–2021

Women are under-represented in political leadership roles, comprising only a quarter of national parliament members across the world. This is surprising, given women's comparatively high level of education and labor force participation. Why has women's political leadership lagged behind other indicators of gender equality? In this study, we revisit the importance of gender attitudes and examine the extent to which they shape women's share of parliament. Prior studies either examine gender attitudes by relying on cross-sectional research designs with small samples or adopt proxy measures that serve as crude indicators of gender ideology. We overcome these limitations by directly measuring gender attitudes from the World Values Survey and European Values Study, while adopting a panel design with a larger sample of countries and a more comprehensive set of controls. Drawing from our dataset of 275 observations across 101 countries during the 1995–2021 period, we find that our attitudinal measure, gender egalitarianism, wipes away most of the observed differences in women's share of parliament between world regions. Moreover, when we add two-way fixed effects, we find that a one-unit increase in a country's gender egalitarianism score is associated with an increase in women's parliament share by about four or five percentage points. Finally, we address concerns about endogeneity by replicating our results using two-stage least squares models with fixed effects. Overall, our findings suggest that gender ideology helps account for the growing success and persistent obstacles faced by women political candidates across the world.

Dynastic Female Politicians and Family Rule in Thailand: Evidence from the 2019 and 2023 General Elections

ABSTRACT Previous research has shown that the majority of Thailand’s female Members of Parliament (MPs) elected in or before 2011 came from political families and constituted one small yet important part of the country’s dynastic democracy. This paper examines whether this pattern continued in the last two general elections of 2019 and 2023. It shows that a sizeable number of female MPs elected in 2019 and 2023 are related, by blood or marriage, to male MPs. While the restoration of electoral politics in 2019 has helped end military authoritarian rule, it has enabled well-connected and well-heeled women from political families to win parliamentary seats. Electoral dynasticism still constitutes a formidable, if not insurmountable, structural barrier to entry into Parliament for female candidates who do not have powerful family connections. Dynastic female MPs contribute, as in the previous decades, to adding a dynastic and patrimonial quality to Thailand’s democracy.

From South Africa to the World: The Political and Legal Legacies of Chinese Indenture in the Transvaal

ABSTRACT This article examines the term ‘new slavery’, short for ‘a new form of slavery’, as used by Liberal British Parliament members and white South African trade unionists in opposition to the recruitment of Chinese indentured labourers to work in the Transvaal gold mines. The recruitment of Chinese indentured labourers emerged following the South Africa War (1899-1902) in response to African ‘native’ labourers’ refusal to return to the mines. This article explores how the Transvaal’s distinct indentured labour system, characterized by coercive features akin to those in the Indian indentured labour system, and further defined by mandatory repatriation, fines for assisting labourers in contract violation and the establishment of a Chinese consulate for fair treatment, set a precedent for global labour programmes. These specific conditions of the Transvaal system influenced the development of subsequent labour initiatives, particularly the Chinese Labour Corps during World War I. The article provides an overview of the overlaps between these programmes and highlights the enduring impact of the Transvaal system on the evolution of global labour practices including modern guest worker programmes.

The sharp-tongued Hungarian Member of Parliament, whose Anecdotes were Published in a Book in his Lifetime: The “Funny Stories” of Zoltán Meskó

The sharp-tongued Hungarian Member of Parliament, whose Anecdotes were Published in a Book in his Lifetime: The “Funny Stories” of Zoltán Meskó

Financial Crisis Management from the Perspective of national MPs: A Qualitative Assessment

Background: Financial crises have characterized economic history since the Roman Empire. Despite intensive political debate and extensive scientific research, parliaments in their role as legislators have failed to develop effective protection mechanisms. The example of the financial crisis of 2008 showed a major lack of political foresight with regard to the long-term consequences of decisions. Aim: The paper aims to provide insights into how financial politicians use their individual knowledge in policymaking and how knowledge management tools can help achieve financial market stability. Methods: Seven qualitative interviews with Members of national Parliaments in Europe were conducted in mid-2023. The evaluation was carried out using qualitative content analysis. Results: The results show that while the majority have the skills and understanding, the topic itself is underrepresented in everyday parliamentary life. The article concludes with a discussion of the need to introduce knowledge management systems in the parliamentary context. Practical relevance: This paper helps to uncover structural knowledge deficits among MPs. Knowledge management instruments could provide easy-to-implement support.

Gender quotas and media representation of female members of parliament under authoritarianism: The case of Egypt

Drawing on studies of gendered mediation and women's political representation, this study explores the implications of using gender quotas to facilitate women's political representation on their portrayal in the media. Focused on the coverage of Egyptian female members of parliament in the daily newspaper al-Masry al-Yawm, the study employs feminist content analysis to examine more than two thousand news articles across three parliamentary terms (2012–2022). The article reveals a heightened visibility that challenges patriarchal stereotypes and legitimizes women as political actors. However, this coverage exists within an authoritarian setting, where the media's compliance with government narratives subtly upholds the regime's image. This, in turn, may limit the empowering effect of such visibility, especially among regime critics, highlighting the complex role the media plays in mirroring and molding power relations and in the negotiation of gender perceptions.

Political voting in the United Kingdom 2019 general election and risk of living with obesity in a nationally representative sample

BackgroundLimited evidence from the United States suggests that county/state rates of people with obesity are positively associated with voting for the Republican Party presidential candidate, although this question has not yet been studied at the individual level, and/or outside of the United States, where the health and political systems are very different in other countries.ObjectivesUsing individual level data, assess differences in rates of people with obesity according to political voting in the United Kingdom 2019 general election, and examine whether people living in constituencies won by Members of Parliament (MPs) from the Conservative Party were more likely to be living with obesity than those living in constituencies won by MPs from other parties.MethodsData was obtained by the Ipsos KnowledgePanel where panellists are recruited via a random probability unclustered address-based sampling method. 4000/14,016 panellists were randomly invited to provide data on socio-demographics, health outcomes, voting behaviour and height/weight.Results2668/4000 (67%) of invitees provided data, 95/2668 (3.5%) were not eligible to vote, with the remaining 2573 (96.5%) included. Conservative Party voters were more likely to be living with obesity than those who voted Labour (OR:1.42 95% CI (1.01–1.99)) or Liberal Democrats (1.54 95% CI (1.00–2.37)). Conservative Party voters on average had significantly higher BMI scores than those voting Labour and Liberal Democrats; BMI mean difference 0.88 points (95% CI: 0.16–1.61) between Conservative and Labour voters, and 1.04 points (95% CI: 0.07–2.02) between Conservatives and Liberal Democrats voters. There was no evidence participants living in constituencies won by Conservative MPs were more likely to be living with obesity than constituencies won by other party MPs.ConclusionGovernments and public health agencies may need to focus on the political affiliation of the public when developing strategies to reduce the number of people with obesity.

Location matters! Geospatial dynamics of MP responses to Covid‐19 protests in multilevel systems

AbstractIn liberal democracies, protest can serve as a trigger for necessary policy reforms, but it can also be used by a loud minority to advance political goals against the will of the majority. Focusing on such vocal protests in the context of the Covid‐19 pandemic, we investigate the following question: How does the location of protest events affect the likelihood of political engagement with the protests in a multilevel system? Combining social movement literature with studies of issue attention and rhetorical responsiveness, we analyze how German members of parliaments’ (MPs) responses vary using their tweets from the onset of the pandemic to the German federal election in September 2021. Using quantitative text analysis, we measure rhetorical responsiveness to Covid‐19 protests and apply multilevel regression analyses and difference‐in‐differences. We find that more protests lead to more attention; however, MPs respond most strongly to protests within the state they represent. Furthermore, politicians’ level within the German multilevel system affects their attention to these protests, with MPs elected at lower levels of an electoral system responding more to local protest events than MPs elected at higher levels. The results highlight the importance of the location of protests in attracting political attention.

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: GENDER ASPECT OF LAW-MAKING PROCESS

The article attempts to understand to what extent the gender identity of members of the European Parliament initiating a bill determines the subject and nature (feminine or masculine) of the issued legal acts. The research question is whether there is an influence of gender in relation to the subject and nature of regulations adopted by the European Parliament. The chronological period under study is 2009-2022 and is determined by the available open data. For the purpose of the study, a proprietary database was compiled, where the units of analysis are regulations issued by the European Parliament within the framework of the ordinary legislative procedure. The sample population consisted of 1155 observations. The key method of analysis was qualitative descriptive statistical analysis. The calculations were made within the framework of the freely distributed software Orange Data Mining. The results of the analysis demonstrate in general the lack of influence of the gender aspect in relation to the nature and subject of regulations and laws issued by the European Parliament. The gender of parliamentarians-initiators is not a factor determining the nature and subject matter of legislative acts issued by the European Parliament. The results of the analysis, therefore, refute the null hypothesis and confirm the alternative hypothesis: the nature (feminine/masculine) of the bills initiated and regulations adopted by the European Parliament does not depend on the gender factor (that is, on the gender of the deputy who initiated the bill).

The Role of the Jewish Lobby Toward US Foreign Policy Making on the 2023 Israel-Palestine War (Case of AIPAC)

This paper examines the complex dynamics of the Israel-Palestine conflict, focusing on the role of interest groups, particularly the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in shaping US foreign policy. The conflict, rooted in historical and territorial disputes, has seen recurrent escalations, most recently triggered by Hamas attacks on Israel. The United States, a longstanding ally of Israel, provides substantial financial and military aid, with AIPAC exerting influence on policymakers to maintain and strengthen this relationship. Through qualitative research methods and literature studies, the paper analyzes the impact of AIPAC's lobbying efforts on US policy responses to the Israel-Palestine conflict. The article finds that the AIPAC lobby is deeply rooted in US policymaking structures, ranging from vice-president, and higher-echelon staff, to parliament members. This article also finds that since 2021, AIPAC has developed its policy to participate in political campaign contributions. Understanding AIPAC influences, the authors note that ethical considerations are crucial to maintaining a strong and representative democracy in the United States. This paper recommends the US to refocus its national interest because such overly foreign influence on national policymaking has the potential to harm America's long-term relationships and interests in the Middle East if the US can’t make the barrier for foreign interference toward its national interests.

Explaining immigration casework in federal Members of Parliament's district offices in Canada.

In Canada, a majority of federal constituency offices deal primarily with immigration files. The few qualitative studies on the subject show that the resources dedicated to these files and the type of work carried out on the immigration files handled vary between offices, thus contributing to disparities in service between federal electoral districts. How can such variation be explained? Based on the quantitative analysis of unpublished administrative data, this article first highlights the diversity of files handled by constituency offices, as well as the types of intervention carried out by constituency assistants. It then aims to explain the variations in case processing according to the type of case and the volume of requests handled. Studies of constituents' files received and processed at constituency office level have argued that the political ideology, gender and ethnicity of the deputy as well as the demographics of the constituency are explanatory factors. This analysis shows that in the case of immigration files, constituency demography is the most important factor, while the MP's political affiliation plays a very limited role. These results shed new light on the factors involved in the processing of immigration cases at constituency level, and add nuance to previous, mainly qualitative analyses. Our results also contribute to understanding the work of constituency offices for constituents, which appears to be far less partisan than in other countries where similar offices exist.

Recess Analysis as An Aggregation of Interests

In a democratic society, one of the functions of the government is the aggregation of interests. One way to implement interest aggregation in political parties is through the conduct of recess, which is a period during which members of parliament or Regional Legislative Council (DPRD) and National Legislative Council (DPR) engage in activities outside of sessions, commonly referred to as working visits. Research results indicate how the process and flow unfold during recess activities conducted by members of the GERINDRA party faction in the Central Java province. Members of the council involved in recess activities are equipped with recess materials, which are also provided to the constituents present in the respective electoral districts ( DaPil ). During the implementation of recess activities, there is a process of absorbing aspirations, collecting aspirations, and evaluating implemented aspirations or proposals. Furthermore, obstacles arise during the recess activities, and specific strategies are employed by members of the DPRD GERINDRA party faction in the Central Java province in implementing interest aggregation.

Mixing Codes in Comments on Youtube Video Posts Debate for Presidential and Vice Presidential Candidates for the 2024 Election

This February, Indonesia will hold a democratic party to elect members of parliament and the president. Of course, the political and national atmosphere became warm with various political ripples and upheavals occurring, including political campaign activities, both political party campaigns and campaigns for Presidential and Vice Presidential Candidates. Various attributes and activities of political campaign speeches are interesting to study from various aspects, including the aspect of language use. This research aims to identify forms of code mixing found in KompasTV YouTube comments. This research method uses a descriptive method with a qualitative approach. The data for this research are comments from internet users (netizens) that researchers observed through screenshots from the comments column on the KompasTV YouTube channel. The data comes from the comments column of the KompasTV YouTube channel which contains elements of code mixing. Data collection techniques use listening, note-taking and documentation techniques. Data were analyzed using the Mills and Huberman model through the stages of data identification, data reduction, data analysis, and data presentation. Based on the research results, it was concluded that the code mixing that many netizens do in the comments column occurs at the word level. This is very possible because comments in word form are simpler, more practical and "to the point".

Ethnic Aspects of the 2022 Hungarian Parliamentary Elections with Special Reference to the Slovene National Minority

Abstract The 2022 parliamentary elections in Hungary offered for the third time an opportunity for national minorities to elect their representative by casting a preferential vote for their Member of Parliament. However, the failure of the list of representatives of the most numerous ethnic group, the Roma, and the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights concerning the violation of multiple elements of the electoral system underscored the need for a comprehensive assessment of hitherto experience and for a reform of the preferential minority mandate and the institution of advocacy. This study aims to contribute to this process by examining the institutional framework and the electoral results, with a particular focus on the analysis of minority-related aspects of the last parliamentary elections and the situation of the Slovene national minority.

Russia Weaponization of Canada's Far Right and Far Left to Undermine Support for Ukraine.

This article details the Russian government's efforts to influence Canadians' perceptions of the war in Ukraine. Specifically, we examined Russian information campaigns tailored to Canadian audiences on X (formerly known as Twitter) and the supportive ecosystems of accounts that amplify those campaigns. By 2023, this ecosystem included at least 200,000 X accounts that have shared content with millions of Canadians. We identified ninety accounts with an outsized influence. The vast majority of the influential Canadian accounts were far right or far left in orientation. These networks were among Canada's most prolific and influential political communities online. We determined this by comparing these networks' potential influence to the online community engaging with Canada's 338 members of Parliament on X and a sample of twenty influential X accounts in Canada. The sophistication and proliferation of Canada-tailored narratives suggest a highly organized and well-funded effort to target Canadian support for Ukraine.

Representational Style Across National and Constituency Contexts: Members of Parliament in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom

In this study, we ask how and why do Members of Parliament adopt different representational styles? Looking at MPs in four Westminster-style democracies, we identify differences between MPs and inductively explore influences on representational styles by first using participant observation to gain deep insights into the activities of a small sample of MPs and then by using semi-structured interviews from a larger sample to elucidate findings from the observations across states. Our primary focus is the method of connection between representative and citizen, as fostered by the representative while present in the constituency. Despite similar institutional and electoral contexts across countries, we find a significant variation that is influenced by both country-level and constituency-level factors. Findings suggest a continuum from highly service-oriented to highly symbolic-oriented styles, where MPs from the UK illustrate the former, and MPs from Canada illustrate the latter, though with further variation at the constituency level that is based, in part, upon both geography and demographics.

Regionalisation under occupation: Western Saharan parliamentary elites and the Moroccan regionalisation strategy (2011–16)

ABSTRACT This article explores the role played by the Members of Parliament elected from the constituencies of Western Sahara in 2011 in the occupation strategies employed by the Moroccan state in this territory. The analysis begins at a time when territorial power was being redefined in Morocco, after the Moroccan proposal for an Advanced Autonomy Plan (2007) as a form of conflict resolution and the subsequent creation of institutions to address regionalisation (2010–11) and covers the entire parliamentary process. The paper examines three analytical dimensions – elections, political culture and parliamentary activity – in order to explain the development of identification processes.

Light At The End Of The Tunnel? The Staging of Expertise During the COVID-19 Vaccination Campaign

In this paper, we compare the governmental and public framings of expertise in the Dutch Covid-19 vaccination campaign in the period between January 1st and April 30th, 2021. Specifically, we collected all statements regarding vaccination on three interrelated stages: (1) the official press conferences; (2) Twitter, for responses to government policies; and (3) political motions that were put forward by Members of Parliament in the days following the press conferences. We combine an interactional framing approach with a discursive psychological perspective to get insights into how framings between stages modify, contest, or build upon each other. We argue that the press conferences show a persistent technocratic framing, in the sense that a direct line between science and policy is assumed and promoted. Unlike the first period of the COVID-19 crisis in 2020, experts are not often quoted initially, but key political actors themselves act as responsible for the message that there is light at the end of the tunnel, if only citizens will get vaccinated. Once the AstraZeneca vaccine comes under fire, however, experts are again held accountable for the policy message. Throughout, governmental policies are disputed on Twitter and in Parliament, albeit in different ways, by making hidden moralities relevant, such as the government’s assumed complacency, rigidity, and inability to explain policies with the available evidence.

Mapping citizens, voters, and parties’ preferences on European solidarity across EU member states

ABSTRACT Since 2008, the European Union (EU) witnessed a growing tension between the social and economic dimensions of integration as a consequence of the ‘polycrisis’. The increasing politicisation of EU issues in national political arenas that led to the rise of Eurosceptic parties mostly revolved around the issue of European solidarity. Against this background, this study investigates the congruence between voters and incumbent members of national parliaments on the highly contentious aspects of EU solidarity. First, the article maps the extent to which national political elites share similar views on EU solidarity with their voters. Secondly, we assess members of parliaments (MPs)-voters’ congruence at the party level. Employing original data from an elite and a mass survey conducted in six EU countries between 2017 and 2018, we find that both voters and MPs expressed a high level of support for policies strengthening European solidarity in the Eurozone periphery. Instead, voters in Northern and Eastern EU member states shared more positive preferences than their national representatives. Furthermore, the party-voter distance was higher for radical-right Eurosceptic MPs, especially in Northern Europe, than for other parties.

Prohibiting Political Party Membership as a Condition for Receiving Political Service Retirement Benefits under Ethiopian Law: A Comparison with Kenya and Tanzania

Abstract This article questions the justification for restricting political party membership as a condition for receiving political service retirement benefits in Ethiopia (a restriction first imposed through the Administration of the President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Proclamation and endorsed in the Rights and Benefits of Outgoing Heads of State and Government, Senior Government Officials, Members of Parliament and Judges Proclamation). After reviewing relevant law, literature and comparative experience from Kenya and Tanzania, the article argues that prohibiting political party membership without a pressing need for non-partisan service is an unjust restriction on the right to freedom of political party membership. Benefits for retiring high-ranking government officials are part of the right to social security and should not be disallowed based on political party membership.