The challenge
In Pakistan, 11 million fewer women than men voted in the 2018 national election, and the national gender gap in turnout was 9.1 percentage points.
The case
Ali Cheema, Sarah Khan, Asad Liaqat and Shandana Khan Mohmand studied a nonpartisan canvassing campaign run by local civil society organisations to increase women's turnout in Pakistan's 2018 national election in Lahore; the intervention was approved by the Election Commission of Pakistan. In total, 2,500 households were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: a visit by a female canvasser targeted at women, a visit by a male canvasser targeted at men, separate visits to both, or no visit. Canvassing women alone had no effect on their turnout. But women's turnout increased by 5.4 percentage points in households where men were canvassed and by 8.0 percentage points where both men and women were canvassed, which also saw more political discussion and more practical support from men to help women vote. Two months after the election, men in these households showed lasting changes in their willingness to take costly actions supporting women's participation.
Why the results were mixed
The authors conclude that their results show 'the importance, and tangible benefits, of engaging men to ease constraints that hinder equal participation' in patriarchal settings where male household members act as gatekeepers.
Sources
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