The Quest for Gender Parity
Angela Merkel and the Diversification of Electoral Politics in Germany
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Abstract
Given Angela Merkel's long-standing reluctance to label herself a feminist, many scholars would find it hard to credit her with the increasingly “intersectional” composition of the Bundestag and the Landtage as of the 2021 elections. The last 16 years have nonetheless witnessed major shifts in German policies affecting the rights of women, persons with migration background, and lgbtqia community members. These developments have arguably contributed, directly and indirectly, to voters’ willingness to accept candidates with diverse backgrounds as capable of representing “the people's interests” beyond the needs of their respective identity groups. This article considers multiple factors contributing to increasing diversity among German lawmakers at various levels, including policy shifts that have helped to reconfigure the political opportunity structure and thus the electoral landscape. It concludes with reflections on Merkel's legacy, coupled with the role of generational change in “normalizing” diversity across the Berlin Republic.
Contributor Notes
Joyce Marie Mushaben is a Curators’ Distinguished Professor of Comparative Politics and Gender Studies (Emerita) at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, an Adjunct Professor in the bmw Center for German and European Studies at Georgetown University, and an International Advisory Board member of the eu feminist think tank, Gender5Plus. Her publications include Becoming Madam Chancellor (2017), Gendering the European Union (2012, co-edited with Gabriele Abels), and The Changing Faces of Citizenship (2008). Her books in progress are titled What Remains? The Dialectical Identity of Eastern Germans (Palgrave, forthcoming, 2022) and “From ‘Mutter der Kompanie’ to ‘Madam Europe’: Ursula von der Leyen and the Pursuit of Gender Equality” (forthcoming, 2023).