Does Female Leadership Matter in a One-Party State?

• In Event: Women in Chinese Politics (Pre-Recorded)

Abstract

Despite an abundant literature on the impacts of female leadership in democratic politics, there has been fewer researches studying whether females shape policies and development outcomes in nondemocratic contexts. Our paper intends to bridge this gap through examining the power dynamics and policy consequences of female leadership in the one-party state of China. Drawing on a large data of communist party secretaries and mayors in Chinese cities, our analysis documents four facts. First, female communist party secretaries follow considerably different career paths than the male counterparts and female mayors. Second, the presence of a female party secretary in cities is associated with a significant reduction in pollution emission and an increase in pro-social public goods. Third, female party secretaries enjoy a significantly higher rate of promotion than the male counterparts. Fourth, female mayors do not differ from males in development outcomes and the likelihood of promotion. These facts spell out an important division of labor between the state apparatus (represented by mayors) and the party’s leadership (represented by party secretaries) that is previously under-theorized in the literature. While mayors are responsible for boosting revenue and growth, party secretaries are supposed to guard the party line and maintain the internal harmony of the society. The central argument in our explanation is that the motive of maintaining a harmonious society is complementary to the identity of female leadership in shaping the dynamics of political selection by CCP, which tried to make a strong case for female representation in political leadership in the past decades.

Author

• Tianyang Xi, Peking University