Xuhong Su, Wenbo Chen
This inquiry investigates the effectiveness of legislative gender quotas onwomen’s electoral representation and how it evolves over time and acrosscountries. Using 190 countries spanning between 1947 and 2015, thefindings suggest that quotas’ effectiveness is conditional on types andfeatures, varies with time and imprinted with countries’ historicalrepresentation status. Reserved seats usher in more women when featuringhigh legislative thresholds and the effects are stable; Candidate quotas signalcountries’ historical disadvantage but show an acceleration effect onwomen’s representation over time. Strong placement rules increase women’srepresentation, yet the effects decelerate. Strong sanctions indicate countries’historical disadvantage, nevertheless, accelerate women’s representation overtime. The interactive dynamics between time and quota types and featuresprove nuanced, presenting good room for policy learning and future policydesign.