Professor Rachel Bernhard featured in PNAS

Professor Rachel Bernhard was featured in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).  

Men and women candidates are similarly persistent after losing elections

Professor Bernhard and her co-author Dr. Justin de Benedictis-Kessner, Harvard University, examine women’s reactions to electoral losses to show that women candidates are no more dissuaded from seeking office again after losing than men are. We analyze elections across a broad range of geographies in the United States, focusing on local and state races where most candidates run for office. These results add depth to mainstream news coverage of the surge in women’s candidacies following the 2016 presidential election, especially to more pessimistic coverage claiming the phenomenon would have little long-term impact. Contrary to those narratives, our results show that the surge in women candidates is unlikely to be a “flash in the pan” for women’s political representation.

The article is available by clicking here.