What Happens When Right-Wing Populism Meets Gender Politics? Posted by Judith Sijstermans | Mar 9, 2021 | A poster for Belgium’s radical right-wing populist party Vlaams Belang: “Flanders From Us Again” Populist radical right parties have traditionally been the realm of men. Comparative studies have highlighted the underrepresentation of women, both in the parties and amongst their voters, and views on gender issues are more uniformly traditional than other parties on the right. But is this always the outcome for right-wing populism and gender politics? One academic study argues that the “gender gap” is overstated and populists may have begun to “demasculinize” party programs. Examinations in Bulgaria and Slovakia found a focus on descriptive representation has obscured the substance of party work on women’s issues.