Replication Data for: The Gap Within: The Impact of Separate-Gender Polling Stations on Voter Turnout

To address the large and persistent gender gaps in political participation, governments across the world have adopted policies, such as the creation of segregated voting facilities, that are expected to encourage turnout. Despite their widespread adoption, we know nothing about the impact of such policies on voter turnout. This research note studies the impact of gender-segregated polling stations on women’s electoral turnout in Pakistan’s general election of 2018. We use a combination of large-scale administrative data, information from electoral policy documents, and qualitative interviews. By comparing female turnout at female-only polling stations to female turnout at mixed polling stations within a limited geographic area, we show that separate-gender polling stations decrease women’s voter turnout. Our findings present the first-ever empirical evidence on this question and add to the growing body of research that highlights the limitations of using gender-segregated tools to promote gender equality in developing countries.

为应对政治参与领域长期存在的显著性别差距，全球各国政府纷纷出台相关政策，譬如设立性别隔离投票设施，以期提振选民投票率。尽管此类政策已得到广泛推行，但目前学界对其对选民投票率的影响仍缺乏相关研究认知。本研究札记以2018年巴基斯坦大选为研究场景，考察性别隔离投票站对女性选举投票率的影响。本研究综合运用大规模行政数据、选举政策文件信息与质性访谈资料开展分析。通过在有限地理范围内对比专属女性投票站与混合性别投票站的女性投票率，研究发现性别隔离投票站会降低女性选民的投票参与率。本研究的发现为该议题提供了全球首份实证证据，同时也为日益壮大的研究阵营补充了新的经验结论——该阵营的研究均指出，在发展中国家借助性别隔离工具推进性别平等存在诸多局限。