The Women’s Issue, and why it’s not just women’s

2 Apr 2026

By: Mollie Delahay

Editor/Editor-in-Chief: Grace Samuel

'Why does diplomacy have a women issue?' - LSE

The views expressed are the author's own and do not reflect the views of the International Relations Society.

When reflecting on International Women’s Day this year, it is perhaps important to return to

the “women’s issue” and why female politicians are so much better at addressing them.

Recent studies have shown that there is a strong correlation between ‘women’s issues’

being raised in political chambers and the number of female politicians in that chamber.

Furthermore, elected women have been found to be better at predicting the political

concerns of their female constituents. However, issues within policy that are labelled as

“women’s issues” can range from childcare to gender-based violence, often affecting far more

social groups than women. And in the current political context of dwindling support for EDI

initiatives, the call for the representation of women in political chambers has become more

urgent.

This correlation has significant implications for voting behaviour, as constituents increasingly

vote based on shared characteristics as they may profile certain candidates. Women can

feel a greater level of protection or safety when represented in public offices, and they would

be right to. To illustrate, one study has revealed that within Brazil, the presence of a female

mayor correlated with a 50% average reduction in violence against women in her 4-year

tenure. This study compared municipalities to conclude that women in office more effectively

address gender-based violence. Moreover, it was the most gender representative cabinet in

British history that termed the levels of violence against women and girls in the UK a national

emergency, and that same cabinet has now begun implementing a new VAWG strategy to

protect children from the misogyny that encourages this. On the other hand, if women

become solely responsible for raising ‘women’s issues’, then they risk becoming siloed in the

political sphere. In times of national crisis, ‘women’s issues’ may be seen as less urgent, and

almost fanciful, if they are misunderstood and mislabelled in this way.

Thus, it is important to unpack what ‘women’s issues’ are exactly. They often refer to policy

areas or rights that disproportionately affect women, or seek to address gender inequality.

They can include access to healthcare such as reproductive rights, equal pay, childcare

access, and as aforementioned, gender-based violence. Yet, as the scope and remit of a

‘women’s issue’ is so large, it inevitably impacts the majority of a given population. For

example, childcare reforms, being a ‘women’s issue’ - such as parental leave and childcare

allowance - do recognise that the burden of household responsibilities and domestic

labour often falls upon the mother. But, the narrative that this is therefore a ‘women’s issue’

only recreates this unequal division, therefore adversely contributing to the gender inequality

that policy reforms seek to mitigate. Additionally, the concern of equal pay applies to more

social groups than women. As shift work in general is increasingly devalued, it is often

migrant workers who experience unequal pay. The disparate labour laws around the world

are a concern for workers’ rights writ large. Concerning the idea of ‘equal pay’ only with

‘women’s issues’ perhaps dilutes this multifaceted problem of exploitation. Ultimately, the

labelling and mislabelling of key policy issues perpetuates a damaging assumption that

women’s issues only affect women. It can compartmentalise these issues and push them

further away, or ignore other social groups who may experience certain discrimination.

What’s even more concerning is that the current political vortex is not particularly receptive

to arguments that favour representation. If we must call them ‘women’s issues,’ then we

need more women in office talking about them. But, this is not helped when EDI and DEI

policies are beginning to be disregarded as threats to meritocracy and identity politics is

feared in the case it creates unneeded culture wars. Nonetheless, it is clear that women’s

continued political engagement is essential to ensuring their security and also spotlighting

key social issues. Hope remains, though, as international organisations such as UN Women

have continued to echo this sentiment. They advocate for gender-sensitive reforms and fund

local initiatives, such as Women's Leadership Training in Papua New Guinea, and the

Programme for Enhancing Rural Women's Leadership and Participation in Nation Building in

Timor Leste. In the case of an election, women are helped prepare for official duty, and if not,

they are guided to remain active citizens within their local communities.

Not just on International Women’s Day, but year-round, it is incumbent upon all of us to pay

attention to our women in office, or more crucially to those ‘women’s issues.’