After 100 years, there’s still no “woman voter”

As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, this episode traces the history of women’s voting behavior and why women voters have never been a monolith — despite efforts to portray them that way. In their new book A Century of Votes for Women: American Elections Since Suffrage, Christina Wolbrecht and Kevin Corder examine […]

As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, this episode traces the history of women’s voting behavior and why women voters have never been a monolith — despite efforts to portray them that way.

In their new book A Century of Votes for Women: American Elections Since Suffrage, Christina Wolbrecht and Kevin Corder examine women’s (and men’s) voting behavior, and trace how women’s turnout and vote choice evolved across a century of enormous transformation overall and for women in particular.

The work shows that there is no such thing as ‘the woman voter. Instead, there is considerable variation in how different groups of women voted in response to changing political, social, and economic realities. The points Wolbrecht makes in this interview about how women are perceived by pundits and scholars alike are worth reflecting on as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of suffrage and prepare for an election this fall.

Wolbrecht is Professor of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame and Director of the Rooney Center for the Study of American Democracy. Her areas of expertise include American politics, political parties, gender and politics, and American political development.

A Century of Votes for Women: American Elections Since Suffrage

Rooney Center for the Study of American Democracy

Christina Wolbrecht on Twitter

Behind the scenes of the “year of the woman”

The connective tissue of democracy