We examine this mobilizing effect in two different political contexts-2014, an election when gender issues were not central, and 2018, an election when gender-related issues were a prominent focus of the national debate. We evaluate whether the presence of a female candidate on the ballot in a gendered political environment increases turnout among particular groups in the electorate. In this paper, we examine the relationship between female candidates, electoral environment, and voter turnout. While the wave of female candidates and record-breaking voter turnout made headlines independent of one another, there is reason to believe the two are connected. In 2018, 53.4% of the voting-eligible population cast a ballot (Misra, 2019)-the highest midterm turnout since 1914 (United States Election Project). Footnote 1 Equally newsworthy was that the 2018 election motivated voters to turn out in unusually high numbers. The unusual size of the candidate pool (225 women running as candidates of a major party), the diversity of the field on the dimensions of race, age, and occupation, and their distinctive Democratic lean is well documented (CAWP, 2018a) and has been the topic of much political discussion. The 2018 midterm elections saw a record number of women candidates throw their hat into the electoral ring. These findings demonstrate that the mobilizing effect of women candidates is dependent on political context. Utilizing a difference-in-difference approach, we confirm these results are not due to the endogenous selection of where women choose to run. Moreover, in both states, a woman on the ballot was especially important for young people, a group that is traditionally less engaged. In Pennsylvania, which tracks registrants’ party affiliation, Democrats, members of third parties, and independents were particularly impacted by the presence of a female candidate. Our results show that both female and male voters were more likely to turn out in the 2018 midterm elections when a woman was on the ballot for the U.S. Utilizing voter files in Pennsylvania and Washington for 2014 and the more gender focused 2018 election, we evaluate this potential mobilizing effect in both primary and general midterm elections. We argue that having women on the ballot in a gendered electoral environment mobilizes specific groups of voters. In this paper, we examine whether women candidates are more likely to spur turnout in election years when gender-related issues are central to the national debate.
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