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Where they differ from men is a relative lack of concern over deficit, debt and taxation.” says Turnbull. This means Harper is bound to do badly with women. “The issues on which he defines his leadership – being strong, economic growth, the business side of the economy – are not women’s issues.” Women and men evaluate
leaders differently. Turnbull says there are important differences. “Women are more open to somebody who appears to them to be compassionate,
caring,
and concerned about fairness. Women are as concerned about honesty and integrity as men, but men are attracted to strong,
have a positive impact and men more likely to want gov- ernment’s role to be minimal.” And men and women see responsibility differently. Women, Turnbull says, “are more inclined to believe that the whole community should as- sume a significant responsibility for improving peoples’ lives.” Men, in contrast, are more inclined to say “that in- dividuals and families are responsible for their own or their family members’ lives.” According to Donna Dasko, “the more people identify
the government with a tough approach, the fewer women are going to support it.” But Dasko cautions against ste- reotyping women. “There is diversity among women vot- ers. They don’t operate like a block of voters like other blocks. But women are more likely to congregate around the middle of the ideological spectrum, where men tend to be more diverse.” It’s also what the parties talk about that matters. “Ca- nadian women voters are usually most concerned about issues
decisive, macho characteristics.” Dasko says women voters may be more practical and less swayed by leadership at- tributes. Women report that they care more about the di- rection of the party and its policies. “It’s more about what is being done than who is this great man who is showing leadership.”
And then there is style. “The kind of government the like health care, education, employment, crime.
Conservatives represent is not nearly as appealing to wom- en as it is to men.” Turnbull points to attributes such as aggressive, critical, confrontational, and strong. “Harper’s government also comes across as pro-military.” His per- sonal brand is very masculine. Turnbull deadpans, “Harp- er’s softer side is difficult to find.” And Canseco points to a single media moment that turned the tide. “For Harper the moment when he started to lose those women who did vote for him in 2006 was the day he took his kid to school and shook his hand,” instead of giving him a hug. That moment defined Harper for many women. “We heard a lot of commentary from the surveys we’ve done. That could be very poignant moment,” says Canseco, “and it looked like he was shaking hands with a friend.” Canseco compares this with the NDP. “What you look
at women, what has really changed is the popularity of Jack Layton. The Conservatives are at 30 percent with women, the Liberals are slightly lower among women and men, and the NDP is the one that gets the big jump. The NDP can go as high as 25, 26 percent among women.” The NDP’s success may be due to the depth of their team and a tradition of promoting women internally. Canse- co: “What helps the NDP is the women MP’s that are leadership examples – such as Libby Davies. Women like to see other women discussing the issues important to them.” And the Conservatives fail in this regard. There is not one woman in their government with a high profile. Best-known is (former) Harper minister Helena Guergis, of whom Canseco says, “We have heard about Helena
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