02/09/2026
Online violence against women in politics is a threat to democracy.
Technology facilitated gender based violence, including coordinated disinformation, trolling, deepfakes and image based sexual abuse, is increasingly being used to silence women and gender diverse people in public life. A new ALIGN report from ODI explores what shapes political party responses to this growing challenge.
The findings highlight three key factors:
➡️ Gender norms shape expectations of political leadership and can reinforce cultures of silence and weak responses to online violence.
➡️The socio political environment can influence political will to act, including electoral competition, laws, political systems and the increasing weaponisation of gender issues.
➡️Internal party factors also matter, including codes of conduct, reporting mechanisms, party structures, leadership practices and, most importantly, the meaningful participation of women in decision making.
➡️The report shows that political party responses exist on a spectrum, from passive acceptance and minimal action to transformative change.
➡️One of the strongest messages is that responsibility for online safety cannot be placed on women politicians alone. Political parties have a duty to create safer and more inclusive political environments through effective policies, accountability mechanisms and stronger representation of women in positions of power.
Submitted by Editor on Wed, 09/02/2026 - 07:00 Back Online violence against women in politics: what shapes political party responses to technology-facilitated gender-based violence? Source: ODI Over the last decade, a new threat to democracy has emerged in the form of technology-facilitated gender-b...
