ABSTRACT
The fundamental importance of family background in the political socialization of women has been noted in various studies conducted in developed countries on the issues of gender and political participation. Because the parental family is the first social institution a person belongs to and the one he or she grows up in, parental influence on the gender-role orientation of a child is most profound and significant. An intriguing finding concerning the parental family life of the elected women legislators is the prevalence of father absence during the formative years of the elected women legislators. The family headship involves, among other things, the responsibility to observe ancestor worship. Politics often draws its main actors from leading families of the upper class.
