The Patriarchal Political Order
Women across the Global South, and particularly in India, turn out to vote on election days but are noticeably absent from politics year-round. Why? This book combines descriptive and causal analysis of qualitative and quantitative data from more than 9,000 women and men in India to expose how coercive power structures diminish political participation for women. In the book, I unpack how dominant men, imbued with authority from patriarchal institutions and norms, benefit from institutionalizing the household as a unitary political actor. Women vote because it serves the interests of men but stay out of politics more generally because it threatens male authority. Yet, when women come together collectively to demand access to political spaces, they become a formidable foe to the patriarchal political order. Ultimately, this book serves to deepen our understanding of what it means to create an inclusive democracy for all.
Order the book: Cambridge University Press, Amazon
Awards: Winner of the Luebbert Book Award for the best book in the field of comparative politics (2025; Runner-up 2024) Winner of the Victoria Schuck Award for the best book on women and politics (2024) Winner of the Political Networks Section’s Best Book Award for the best book published on political networks (2025)
Media Coverage: Folha de S. Paulo, Rocking our Priors Podcast, Grand Tamasha Podcast
Reviews: Perspectives on Politics, Crooked Timber, Great Gender Divergence