Replication Data for: Facing Voters: Gender Expression, Gender Stereotypes, and Vote Choice

Voters infer traits about political candidates based on their physical appearance. A variety of research has shown that candidates who have physical traits voters associate with the ability to govern receive higher vote shares regardless of their true abilities. This paper adds to the mounting evidence that candidate appearance shapes voter decisions, but goes beyond existing research by examining how variation of gender expression in candidate images affects voter choices. We analyze the way vote choice is shaped by complex combinations of gender expressive visual cues and find that candidates who express their gender in ways that conform to social norms do better at the ballot box compared to those who express their gender in nonconforming ways. Yet, we also find evidence suggesting that this effect dissipates in the presence of additional information about the candidate. Drawing on an original dataset of over 460,000 candidate images and election returns, our analysis suggests that gender conformity is a ‘cheap’ signal of credibility for voters, and washes out when other information is avail- able. Our paper ends by suggesting ways governments can combat bias in gender expression.