Strategic Inclusion Without Transformation: How Populist Radical Right Parties Engage With Women’s Interests

Abstract

Despite their Männerparteien reputation, populist radical right (PRR) parties have recently expanded their agendas to include women’s interests. When do they embrace these interests, and what shapes their stance? We propose a theory of strategic window dressing: electorally struggling PRR parties, seeking to gain voters, showcase women’s interests superficially without shifting core gender ideologies. Using original text analysis of PRR party manifestos across 30 European countries (1984–2022), we find that parties emphasize gender-related rights when electorally vulnerable—but avoid adopting more gender-egalitarian positions. Instead, they promote risk-averse, femonationalist stances. While having a woman leader increases attention to gender-based violence, a higher share of women MPs has no impact on either the salience of or position on women’s interests. These findings suggest that the PRR’s nod to women’s interests is largely a tactical move, not a genuine commitment to substantive representation of women’s interests.