SOFI Working Papers in Labour Economics,
Stockholm University, Swedish Institute for Social Research

Abstract: This paper studies whether the gender of political leaders affects coalition strategies in electoral settings. I use French municipal elections, where institutional rules determine if coalitions are necessary or optional to enter the second round. I compare strategic choices of women and men list leaders, controlling for electoral strength, political orientation and local characteristics. The results show that women leaders are more likely to form coalitions when merging is required, but tend to avoid coalitions when they are optional. These differences have implications for the characteristics of the coalitions formed, as well as for access to seats on municipal councils.

Keywords: Gender differences in politics; Coalition formation; Pre-electoral coalitions; French municipal elections

JEL-codes: D72; J16; K16

Language: English

15 pages, January 14, 2026

Full text files

FULLTEXT01.pdf  Full text

Download statistics

• Stockholm University, Swedish Institute for Social Research
• Home page for this series

Questions (including download problems) about the papers in this series should be directed to Lucas Tilley ()
Report other problems with accessing this service to Sune Karlsson ().

RePEc:hhs:sofile:2026_002This page generated on 2026-01-28 14:26:01.