Who is trusted to navigate the storm? Gendered leadership preferences in times of crisis

What traits do the public prioritise when it comes to trusting political leaders during crises, and are these expectations gendered? While prior research has examined gender biases in political leadership, especially in masculine-coded crises like security or defence, less attention has been paid to how different crisis types shape preferences for gendered leadership traits. Drawing on a UK-based survey experiment, we examine which traits the public value in trustworthy politicians across health, security, and economic crises. We find that while honesty is a universally prioritised trustworthy trait, broader trait preferences are moderated by the type of crisis and respondent gender. Although feminine traits are preferred across the board, security crises elicit relatively stronger preferences for traditionally masculine traits than other crisis types, although only among men. Conversely, health crises amplify support for feminine traits, although only among women. These findings highlight how crisis contexts activate gendered expectations of leadership, revealing that what the public wants from politicians shifts with both the nature of the crisis and the gender of the voter.