APCG Online Colloquium: Fortune Agbele & Antonetta Hamandishe on March 25, 2025

We are pleased to announce the next APCG Online Colloquium, which will be held on Tuesday, March 25^th at 11 am EST / 4 pm GMT. Dr. Fortuna Agbele and Antonetta Hamandishe will present their paper, “Gatekeepers on Women’s Political Participation in Liberia.” Dr. Aili Mari Tripp and Dr. Gretchen Bauer will discuss the paper. Please sign up for the colloquium via this link: https://forms.gle/X2qUvGJMF2RvVWAz5 . The paper and zoom link will be circulated ahead of the colloquium. Please email Alesha Porisky (aporisky@niu.edu) with any questions. We look forward to an exciting discussion!

Title: Gatekeepers on Women’s Political Participation in Liberia

Abstract: Despite widespread voter support for gender equality in politics, women’s political participation in Liberia has declined since 2011, with women lacking support from political parties. This paper adopts the gatekeeping theory to assess how women’s access to political resources and opportunities in Liberia is gated. Using qualitative data, this paper identifies individual and systemic/institutional gatekeepers and mechanisms that shape women’s political opportunities. On the individual level, persons, including ‘godfathers or godmothers,’ traditional leaders, and politicians, with influences at the various levels of Liberian society, yield control over access to political opportunities and resources. Systematic or institutional forms of gatekeeping, as identified within the study, are traditions/religion, male-dominated political networks, winner-take-all electoral systems, and political parties. Though not distinctively separate from the individuals, these norms and rules shape the decisions of who is recruited, gets on the ballots, and is supported to run for office.  These forms of gatekeeping are decoupled from the individual-level gatekeepers because although the influence of individual gatekeepers may sometimes be embedded within systems/institutions that gatekeep women, the discretion of the individual could sway the effect that the institutions can have. In defining the mechanisms of gatekeeping women’s political participation, the study found an interplay of elements such as the strategic marginalisation of women in candidate placement, exclusive political training, the monetisation of politics, and sociocultural norms to create structural barriers that make it significantly harder for women to access political resources, navigate party structures, and succeed as candidates. While gatekeepers perpetuate structural barriers, their influence is not absolute. Factors like socio-political backgrounds and affirmative action policies can mitigate these limitations. The findings imply that robust legal and institutional frameworks can counteract gatekeepers’ influence and promote meaningful female representation in Liberia’s political landscape.

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