Feminist public activism and its impact on the democratisation of Spanish politics (1970–2003)

Feminist Public Activism and its Impact on the Democratisation of Spanish Politics (1970–2003), being a Loughborough Thesis by Publication, is a collection of journal articles and book chapters written by the author over a twenty-five year period. The chapters in Part I cover the presence of women in formal politics, voting preferences, office-seeking, candidate selection and gender-balanced representation in parties, and fall within an established tradition in political science of exploring electoral choices, patterns of parliamentary representation, and party membership. Part I presents findings regarding the process of candidate selection and the representation of women in parliament and party leadership, and culminates in an exploration of the reasons why Spanish parties have been incorporating ever more women into party politics, changing the landscape of formal political representation. The chapters in Part II are devoted to studies of the Spanish women's movement, and emphasise the significance for the nature of Spanish democracy of feminism's impact on the transition, its relationships with parties, penetration of public administration, and its major achievements in advancing the status of women via legal reform and new service provision. Part III concludes with an assessment of gender relations in Spain and with a reflection on the future of feminist politics in the northern hemisphere.