LGBT+ rights and the gender gap : A comparative study of LGBT+ anti-discrimination legislation in the United States

Sammanfattning: This thesis seeks to examine if there is a connection between female representation among U.S. legislators at state level and support of legislation protecting LGBT+ people from discrimination in terms of adoption and foster care. Using the theories of substantive and descriptive representation, three hypotheses regarding female representation and partisanship were tested. In the analysis, it became clear that there is a positive significant correlation between female legislators and voting in favour of anti-discrimination legislation in terms of LGBT+ rights. In addition to this, the study found that partisanship also has a significant effect of the voting outcome, in fact one that is even greater than the effect of gender.