IMPACTS OF CHANGES IN ELECTORAL FINANCING ON THE POLITICAL UNDERREPRESENTATION OF WOMEN AND BLACK INDIVIDUALS

Abstract

Understanding the determinants of political underrepresentation of women and black individuals in institutional power in Brazil continues to pose a challenge for the national Political Science community. Among the explanations explored by researchers, the campaign financing system has undergone drastic changes over the past years. In theory, some of these changes aimed to contribute to breaking the political exclusion of marginalized groups. This study analyzes the results of federal deputy elections between 2014 and 2022 with the objective of employing the differences-in-differences method to estimate the impact of the campaign financing change on the political representation of women and black individuals. Its findings indicate that the new financing system contributes to increasing the electoral chances of female candidates, albeit without providing evidence of a similar effect for black and mixed-race candidates.