Illinois Global Institute

This presentation examines the impact of women in leadership roles within local governments in Brazil amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Using novel municipal-level data, we investigate how female leaders in executive positions responded to the crisis. In the unique context of Brazil's local governance, we examine women leaders' overall effectiveness and impact in mitigating the dissemination of the new coronavirus and its results on their communities, even though municipalities led by women present lower compliance with social isolation measures. To test our hypotheses rigorously, we employ a Regression Discontinuity Design (RDD). Our study considers various policy dimensions, including policy decision, policy implementation, resource allocation, and policy impact. First, we test the effects of gender in local leadership on the results of COVID-19, measured by virus dissemination and death rate. Secondly, we analyze the Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions and Sanitary Policies implemented by Brazilian municipalities. Lastly, we show the effects of gender on health policy expenditures and how those different measures impact the gender effect of COVID-19 results. Beyond Brazil, our research contributes to the broader discussion on gender representation in crisis leadership. We aim to provide evidence-based recommendations and policy insights that empower women in leadership roles, fostering resilience and progress in times of crisis.