”There are So Many Things on Which Women’s Opinions Should be Heard”: Women in Manx Politics

Between 1919, when women were first eligible to stand for election, and December 2023, twenty-six women have been elected to the Manx parliament, Tynwald, as Members of the House of Keys (MHKs). The Women in Manx Politics project explores the experiences of these women, past and present, using statistical analysis, documentary research, interviews, and focus groups, with a view to identifying trends over time in the number of women standing and being elected, women’s reasons for standing, their experiences on the campaign trail, and their experiences in parliament.

Drawing on the global literature on gender and politics, as well as that of small democracy studies, this seminar will highlight some of the challenges faced by women in Manx politics during this period and the ways in which women negotiated these challenges; the influence women MHKs had on political debate on the Island; and the extent to which women’s gendered experience in Tynwald developed over the course of the 20th century.