What is special about women in EU institutions?

Abstract

This essay takes stock of the current state of scholarship on gendered careers in the European Union. Examining the careers of women in the political system of the European Union raises several theoretical and analytical issues, especially considering the long-held reputation of European Union institutions as particularly favorable to the representation of women. First, it will ask whether scholarship has produced convincing evidence substantiating claims that European Union institutions are indeed more gender egalitarian in all aspects of the representational process, from the supply of candidates to shattering the glass ceiling of executive positions. Second, it asks whether scholarship has sufficiently theorized the contextual effects that account for the apparent success of women gaining representation in European Union institutions compared to national institutions.