Gender and Attack Advertising in U.S. Senate Campaigns

We examine if candidate gender influences the issues opponents use in advertising attacks against them in U.S. Senate campaigns. We find evidence that candidates consider partisan issue ownership and issue salience when choosing the topics on which to engage opponents. However, the gender identity of the opponent does not have measurable effects on the selection of issues mentioned in contrast and attack advertising. While highlighting the dominance of partisanship as a key concern in the formulation of attacks against opponents, this study also illustrates the very different issue landscapes faced by women running as Republicans and Democrats, where Democratic women are most likely to face attacks on the issues where both party and gender stereotypes place them at a disadvantage while Republican women are most likely to be attacked where partisan issue ownership puts them at a disadvantage but their gender identity gives them a reputational edge. Gender and attack advertising in U.S. Senate campaignsIn this study we examine how political candidates in the United States may or may not attack their opponents differently based on the opponent's gender. Using a comprehensive dataset of all advertising in U.S. Senate campaigns from 2010 through 2018, we find that the issues used in advertising that attacks opponents does not appear to be influenced by the gender of the target of the ad. Instead, the party of the opponent and the rise and fall of issue importance one campaign cycle to the next has the greatest impact. These findings indicate that women in each party face a different campaign landscape. Because gender and party both carry stereotypes of issue competency, Democratic women are most likely to face attacks on the issues where both party and gender stereotypes place them at a disadvantage, while Republican women are most likely to be attacked where partisan issue ownership puts them at a disadvantage but their gender identity gives them a reputational edge.