Women incumbents in Canada and the decision to run again: an exploratory study

In analyzing the problem of women’s underrepresentation in elected office, many scholars have pointed to one dimension of the “supply side” problem: women are generally less willing to run for office. However, when it comes to the decision to run for re-election, women appear to be as likely, if not more so, to run again than their male counterparts. This exploratory study uses data from interviews with female Canadian MPs to explore this apparent paradox. The results suggest that for female officeholders, the decision to run again is influenced by at least five factors. These are: a desire to seek a return on the investment that is made when entering a career in politics, a desire to carry out specific policy objectives, an increased sense of confidence, reduced role conflict related to work and family responsibilities, and an overall level of satisfaction with the experience of being an officeholder.