Together We Will : Experimental Evidence on Female Voting Behavior in Pakistan
In many emerging democracies women are less likely to vote than men and, when they do vote, are more likely to follow the wishes of household males. The authors assess the impact of a voter awareness campaign on female turnout and candidate choice....
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Policy Research Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2012
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/main?menuPK=64187510&pagePK=64193027&piPK=64187937&theSitePK=523679&menuPK=64187510&searchMenuPK=64187283&siteName=WDS&entityID=000158349_20110620093736 http://hdl.handle.net/10986/3456 |
| Summary: | In many emerging democracies women are
less likely to vote than men and, when they do vote, are
more likely to follow the wishes of household males. The
authors assess the impact of a voter awareness campaign on
female turnout and candidate choice. Geographic clusters
within villages were randomly assigned to treatment or
control, and within treated clusters, some households were
left untreated. Compared with women in control clusters,
both treated and untreated women in treated clusters are 12
percentage points more likely to vote, and are also more
likely to exercise independence in candidate choice,
indicating large spillovers. Data from polling stations
suggest that treating 10 women increased turnout by about 9
votes, resulting in a cost per vote of US$ 2.3. Finally, a
10 percent increase in the share of treated women at the
polling station led to a 6 percent decrease in the share of
votes of the winning party. |
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