The debate – a gender gap in leadership performance?

One of the most striking images of the first televised UK general election leadership debate on Thursday 2nd April 2015 was the comparison of the seven party leaders on the platform including three women: Nicola Sturgeon (SNP), Natalie Bennett (Green), and Leanne Wood (Plaid Cymru). The flash opinion polls immediately after the debate asking the public who won were divided, with YouGov putting Nicola Sturgeon first, while the Guardian/ICM Unlimited survey reported that Miliband and Cameron were neck-and-neck. In this post, Pippa Norris asks: did the sex of the leaders have any impact on how women and men evaluated the leaders’ performance?