Women’s Voting Preferences in Europe: A Replication of the Gender Gap Analysis on the National Level

Abstract In many Western European countries, on average, women tend to lean more left-wing than men, whereas a reverse gap exists in many Eastern European countries. Societal changes in recent times might have changed this gender gap. Using European Values Study data from 2017 to 2022, the researchers update the gender gap in twenty-nine European countries and test the generalizability of earlier identified macro-level factors impacting on the gender gap. The results indicate that the modern gender gap persists, with some differences in the magnitude compared to earlier studies. The findings reaffirm that sociostructural contextual factors, such as female labor market participation and the country’s level of higher educational attainment, and cultural factors, such as the country’s dominant religion, contribute to the gender gap. This article fuels the ongoing debate by updating the literature with recent findings and offering new insights into the stability and variation of gender-based political preferences across Europe.