Are Women Legislators Accountable to Women?

Numerous scholars have argued that the increased numerical representation of women among legislators is likely to lead to increased substantive representation of women, and a number of studies have presented evidence suggesting a strong relationship between the presence of women legislators and attention to women's issues within legislative bodies. ¹ While we have considerable evidence that women legislators give greater priority to women's issues than their male colleagues, we know less about why they do so. What is the process underlying the substantive representation of women by women legislators? Why does the representation of women by women legislators happen? This chapter examines these questions with particular attention to the importance of certain gendered forms of social capital ² (women's organizations and networks among women) in fostering a representational relationship between women public officials and women in the electorate.