Gender and political leadership in a time of COVID

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has undermined the division between the private sphere of the home and public sphere of politics that has traditionally disadvantaged women political leaders. Whereas male political leaders drew on their traditional role as the male head of household to display forms of masculine protectionism towards citizens, women leaders have now been able to draw on their traditional motherly role, for example as the member of the household who traditionally compassionately cares for the sick, to display forms of feminine protectionism. As a result, various women leaders internationally have managed to leverage women’s role in the home to their advantage in the political sphere. Significantly, an appreciation of traditionally feminine attributes in women political leaders has also been displayed in much media coverage, providing a more favourable coverage of female political leaders than has often previously been the case.