Poll: Voters increasingly think women handle policy issues better than men

When asked to compare the performance of male and female politicians on various aspects of holding elected office, most Americans rank them equally. But for those who say one gender performs better than the other, a new survey reported Monday at The Washington Post notes, women increasingly and consistently win the day.

The study polled voters' views on how each gender handles 12 specific policy issues, leadership, representation of their constituents, civility, and ethics. In each case, a majority or plurality ranked men and women equally. But even on traditionally "male" issues, like foreign affairs and gun regulations, more preferred women's approach than men's. Perhaps the most striking disparity was on civility, where 46 percent held the genders are equal, but 45 percent preferred women and only 9 percent preferred men.

"More voters think women would do a better job — on everything — than believe that of men," summarizes Melissa Deckman, a professor of public affairs at Washington College who conducted the poll.

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This held true across party lines, though Democrats were more likely to rate women better, and Republicans did give men preference on four issues: gun policy, law enforcement, immigration, and foreign affairs. Women elected to public office in America are nearly three times more likely to be Democrats than Republicans. Read The Week's Gracy Olmstead on how the GOP could shift that balance.