Organizing Across the Divide: Local Feminist Activism, Everyday Life, and the Election of Women to Public Office

Ann Marshall

Social Science Quarterly, 2002, vol. 83, issue 3, 707-725

Abstract: Objectives. A disciplinary division of labor has discouraged research into the intersections between social movements and electoral participation. To address this gap, this study investigates the efforts of local women activists who organize around electing feminists to public office. Methods. Data was collected through participant observation and in–depth, unstructured interviews with 22 women active with a local chapter of the National Women's Political Caucus (NWPC). Results. The study found that local Caucus women (1) experience everyday life politics in connection with electoral activity, (2) organize through both their own formal structure and a vast informal community–based organizational network, and (3) influence electoral activity in a seemingly candidate–centered environment. Conclusions. Local Caucus activists play a critical albeit less visible role in organizing feminist electoral influence. These findings suggest the importance of research that transcends disciplinary boundaries to investigate the interactions between nonparty grassroots activism and electoral activity.

Date: 2002
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://doi.org/10.1111/1540-6237.00110

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bla:socsci:v:83:y:2002:i:3:p:707-725

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.blackwell ... bs.asp?ref=0038-4941

Access Statistics for this article

Social Science Quarterly is currently edited by Robert L. Lineberry

More articles in Social Science Quarterly from Southwestern Social Science Association
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Wiley Content Delivery ().