Sexism as a political force: The impact of gender-based attitudes on the presidential elections of 2012 and 2016

Objective This article examines the effect of gender attitudes on the voting behavior of whites in the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections. Methods Logistic regression models are used to analyze data from the 2012 and 2016 waves of the American National Election Study. Results Sexist orientations had a greater impact on how Americans, and white Americans in particular, voted in 2016 than in 2012. Attitudes toward gender roles and feminism affected the voting behavior of white men and white women in a highly similar fashion in 2016 but had a greater effect on the voting behavior of college-as opposed to noncollege-educated whites. Conclusion Many observers have argued that the mobilization of sexist voters over the course of the 2016 campaign helped carry Trump to victory. The results of this analysis indicate that, in regard to many key voting blocs, the activation of sexism cost Trump at least as many votes as he gained as due to the countermobilization of nonsexist white voters, particularly those with college degrees. The strength of the nonsexist backlash suggests a need to reassess the received wisdom that sexism among white voters played to Trump's advantage in the 2016 election.