Kelly Dittmar
Assistant Professor of Political Science, Rutgers University-Camden
Scholar, Center for American Women and Politics, Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University-New Brunswick
Chapter Member: New Jersey-Philadelphia SSN
Areas of Expertise:
Connect with Kelly
About Kelly
Dittmar studies gender and American politics. Her research focuses on gender and American political institutions, including the presidency and Congress, with a particular focus on how gender informs campaigns and the impact of gender diversity among elites in policy and political decisions, priorities, and processes. Her current work focuses on the role of women political professionals on legislative and campaign work. Dittmar is a Scholar at the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers’ Eagleton Institute of Politics, where she manages national research projects and contributes to CAWP’s work to advance women in American politics.
Contributions
How Views about Gender Shape U.S. Election Campaigns
Key Findings Brief,
In the News
Kelly Dittmar's research on rhetoric around female politicians discussed by , "No, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Probably Didn't Say That," PolitiFact, March 27, 2019.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on the paths that the members of the House of Representatives took to Congress by Sahil Chinoy and Jessia Ma, "How Every Member Got to Congress" The New York Times, January 26, 2019.
Kelly Dittmar's research on female candidates discussed by , " Why Women Candidates Don't Act like Men Anymore," Voice of America, October 4, 2018.
"What Hasn't Changed about Women in Power Since Anita Hill," Kelly Dittmar, CNN, September 17, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar's research on female candidates discussed by , "Women Just Broke a Record: The Most Female Nominees For Governor in a Single Year," The Washington Post, August 8, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Charlotte Greenfield, "Highchairs and Cuddles: How Parliaments are Catering for Lawmaker Moms" Reuters, July 14, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar's research on , "'Incredible Explosion': 40,000 US Women Interested in Running for Office Since Trump's Election, Report Reveals," The Independent, July 4, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Mary Jordan, "With Blunt Talk and Compelling Stories, Viral Videos are Turning Unknown Women Candidates into Political Sensations" The Washington Post, July 3, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar's research on female political candidates discussed by , "More Women Than Men: State Legislatures Could Shift for the First Time," The New York Times, June 30, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Nia-Malika Henderson, "The Year of the Woman Is Here. But It's Not Quite What You Think." CNN, June 27, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar's research on female candidates discussed by , "Yes, More Women Are Running for the Minnesota House in 2018. But More Men Are, Too.," Minneapolis Post, June 7, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar's research on female candidates discussed by , "Gillibrand's Generosity to Female Candidates May Pay Off in 2020," The Buffalo News, June 7, 2018.
"Widows Succeeding Spouses In Office: Political Science Professor Weighs In," Kelly Dittmar, Interview with Steve Goldstein, KJZZ, June 5, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar's research on perceptions of female candidates discussed by , "Poll: Partisan Gap Could Limit Women's Gains in November," Politico, June 5, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Kimberly Lawson, "5 Women to Watch in Tuesday's Primary Elections" Broadly, June 5, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Kayla Epstein, "With More Women Running for Office, New Opportunities - and Challenges- Arise" The Washington Post, May 31, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Amber Philips, "Women Will Probably Lose More than They Will Win in 2018. But Their Candidacies are Still a Big Deal." The Washington Post, May 16, 2018.
Jennie Sweet-Cushman quoted on female candidates by Dan Merica, "Pennsylvania Only Has Men in Congress. That's About to Change." CNN Politics, May 16, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Tim Darragh, "Trump and Me Too Help Women Reach 'Historic' Heights in Pennsylvania Primary Races" The Morning Call, May 16, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Celeste Katz, "The Pennsylvania Midterm Primaries Tell a Story—but Not the Whole Story—for Women" Glamour, May 15, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Amelia Harnish, "Close to 300 Women are on the Ballot Today. Win or Lose, They’ve Already Made History" Refinery 29, May 15, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Dan Merica and Annie Grayer, "Democratic Women are Winning Primaries in Large Numbers, Energizing Other Candidates" CNN, May 14, 2018.
"Under-Promise and Over-Deliver on Women’s Electoral Odds in 2018," Kelly Dittmar (with ), Huffington Post, May 13, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Lisa Belkin, "Women Candidates Score in the Primaries, but with an Asterisk" Yahoo News, May 9, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Heather Caygle, "Women Trounce Men on First Major Primary Night of the Year" Politico, May 9, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Paul A. Specht and Lynn Bonner, "Dozens of Female Candidates are Headed to NC's Fall Elections. Did Their Gender Help Them?" The News & Observer, May 9, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Carter Sherman, "A Trump Accuser (and a lot of Other Women) Won Their Primaries Tuesday" VICE News, May 9, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women's issues voters by Marie Wilson, "How 'Phantom' Voters Could Decide 6th District Race" Chicago Daily Herald, April 30, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on parental leave for senators by Cheyenne Haslett, "Duckworth Casts Vote Holding Newborn on Senate Floor after Rule Change" ABC News, April 19, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on breaking male-dominated politics by Lisa Speckhard Pasque, "Most-Read Column Argues Trump's Popularity Has To Do with Race and Gender" The Capital Times, April 16, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women running for office by Susan Chira, "Mom is Running for Office" The New York Times, April 14, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female congressional candidates by Danielle Kurtzleben, "A Record 309 Women are Running for Seats in the House (and 1,103 Men)" Tristates Public Radio, April 13, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female candidates by Jessie Opoien, "She's Running (the Campaign): Women Manage Most Wisconsin Democratic Governor Campaigns" The Capital Times, April 12, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on gender dynamics in the 2018 midterms by Courtney Weaver, "MeToo Generation Faces Electoral Test in US" Financial Times, April 9, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Hannah Smothers, "It's Official: A Record Number of Women are Running for House Seats" Cosmopolitan, April 6, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Michael Tackett, "A Wave of Young Women Running Campaigns, Changing Politics" The New York Times, April 3, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Bonnie Kristian, "Female Candidates are Breastfeeding, Discussing Sexual Assault in Campaign Ads" The Week, April 3, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Rebecca Savransky, "Study: Record Number of Women Running for Governor in 2018" The Hill, April 3, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Heather Caygle, "Female Candidates Take on Taboos in New Campaign Ads" Politico, April 3, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by NLC Staff, "Women in Politics: P is for Power" National League of Cities, March 30, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Kyung Lah and Alberto Moya, "Women Seize on Their Past Abuse to Fuel Political Ambition" CNN, March 30, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women running for office, "In Campaigns, Women Highlight Gender in Pitch to Voters" Missouri Lawyers Weekly, March 29, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female Democratic candidates by David Crary, "Off the Sideline" Greensburg Daily News, March 22, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by David Crary, "Students, Women, Teachers Embrace Activism" Daily Tribune, March 21, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Lisa Belkin, "On Gender, Candidates in the Trump Era Negotiate a Changed Landscape" Yahoo News, March 16, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Lisa Wirthman, "Will Colorado Finally Have a Woman Governor?" 5280, March 12, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Vanessa Williams, "Black Women Underrepresented in Elected Offices, but Could Make Gains and History in 2018" The Washington Post, March 5, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Katie Leslie, "Why They Run: Behind the Boom in Texas Women Vying for Congress" Dallas News, February 26, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Brian Lyman, "As Democrats Recruit Women for Legislature; GOP Struggles " Montgomery Advertiser, February 20, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by John Austin, "Texas Women Campaign in Increasing Numbers" The Huntsville Item, February 15, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Hannah Golden, "Women are Running Campaigns to Get Women Elected in 2018 & it's Fantastic" Elite Daily, February 14, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Laura Bassett, "Eyeing the Midterms, Some Republican Women are Taking on the ‘Aging, White’ GOP" HuffPost, February 12, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Laura Campbell, "2018 Women's Marches Reflect Political and Social Division" The Crown, February 2, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Jackie Borchardt, "Are Ohio Lawmakers Serious about Confronting Sexual Harassment at the Statehouse?" Cleveland.com, February 1, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Kristen Soltis Anderson, "Is the Republican Congresswoman an Endangered Species?" Washington Examiner, January 31, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on female voters, "Even Though Most White Women Voted for Trump, He’s Losing Their Approval" The Lily News, January 25, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Lauren Gilger, "U.S. Sees Spike in Women Running for Political Office" 91.5 KJZZ, January 24, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Daniel Dale, "Marches against Trump Turn into a Wave of Democratic Women Running for Office" MetroNewsCanada, January 21, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Daniel Dale, "Marches against Trump Turn into a Wave of Democratic Women Running for Office" The Star, January 20, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Seth Millstein, "Hillary Clinton Retweeted 'TIME' Magazine's Feature about Women Running for Office & She's All about It" Bustle, January 19, 2018.
"Thanks to Trump, They Marched. Now More Women are Running for Office," Kelly Dittmar, NJ.com, January 19, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Jessica Lee, "Two WA Democrats on Time Magazine Cover for being Part of Female-Run, Rebuke of Trump" The Seattle Times, January 19, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Ashley Dejean, "The Women's March Never Ended. These Stats Prove It." Mother Jones, January 19, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Suzanne Baker, "Race to Run against Rep. Peter Roskam in November Reflects New Wave of Women Candidates" Chicago Tribune, January 16, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Grace Housholder, "Women Gaining Seats at the Political Table" KPC News, January 15, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar's research on , "'Why Not Me?' More Women Ask this Question as They Line up to Run for Office," Yakima Herald-Republic, January 13, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Tiffany Pennamon, "Scholars Hold Mixed Reactions about an Oprah Presidential Run" Issues in Higher Education, January 10, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women running for office by Mary Sanchez, "Will 2018 Be the ‘Year of the Woman’ in Politics? We Could Do with an Era" The Kansas City Star, January 5, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Veronica Stracqualursi, "Minnesota's Tina Smith Replaces Al Franken in Senate, Marking Record Number of 22 Female Senators" ABC News, January 3, 2018.
Kelly Dittmar quoted by Katie Leslie and Todd Gillman, "Farenthold isn't the First bad Boss in Congress, but in Current Climate, bBad Behavior Won't Stand" Dallas News, December 26, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on her advocacy by Jonathan Lai, "Professors’ New Classroom Worry? Their Words Going Viral" Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette, November 25, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on the number of women in the GOP by Michelle Cottle, "Can Republicans Stem the Tide of Women Abandoning Their Party?" The Atlantic, November 22, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women running for office by Eliza Relman, "New PACs are Emerging on the Left and the Right to Get Women Elected in 2018" Business Insider, November 19, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted , "Female Candidates are Targeting 3 Key Senate Seats in 2018" Business Insider, October 22, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on representation of black women in politics by Nicole Lewis, "The Presidential Glass Ceiling is Still Intact, But New Report Shows Black Women Made Gains in 2016" The Washington Post, July 31, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women's representation in politics by Jo Mannies, "‘We’re Fearless’: Black Women Wield Unprecedented Political Clout in the St. Louis Area" The St. Louis American, July 25, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on the role of gender in campaigns by Amber Phillips, "Rush Limbaugh, Jane Sanders and a Meditation on the Definition of Sexism" The Washington Post, July 19, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on the way Trump tries to undercut women by Amber Phillips, "Trump’s Mika Tweets Underscore a Dark Reality: For Him, It’s Always about Gender" The Washington Post, June 29, 2017.
"You Can Try to Silence Women of Color in Congress, but It Won’t Work," Kelly Dittmar (with ), Vox, June 20, 2017.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women's representation in office by Erin Kelly, "Next Congress Likely to Have Record Number of Women, but Gains Still Slow" USA Today, October 31, 2016.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on encouragement and recruitment of women in politics by Michael D. Regan, "This Map Shows the Number of Women in Every State Legislature" PBS Newshour, October 29, 2016.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on voter persuasion by Stephen Loiaconi, "As Trump Fights for Female Vote, Campaign Revives Feud with Megyn Kelly" ABC 7, October 26, 2016.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women voters by Juhie Bhatia, "Presidential Nominees Ignore Women of Color at Their Peril" Rolling Stone, August 28, 2016.
Kelly Dittmar's research on how much campaign professionals believe that a woman candidate’s sex has to be managed discussed by , "Are Voters Really Guided by Gender Stereotypes? New Research Says No.," The Washington Post, June 27, 2016.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on women and politics by Tom McLaughlin, "Clinton’s Victory Provides New Opportunity to Analyze Gender Dynamics, Says Researcher" Rutgers-Camden News Now, June 16, 2016.
"In Hillary Clinton’s Run, the “Woman Card” Works in Surprising Ways. Here’s How.," Kelly Dittmar (with ), The Washington Post, June 10, 2016.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on voter curiosity by Jeanne Bonner, "What Do Your Google Searches Say about the Dems?" HLNTV, February 8, 2016.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on maintaining a balance between femininity and masculinity by Catherine Rampell, "Be Pretty, but Not Too Pretty: Why Women Just Can’t Win" The Washington Post, January 21, 2016.
Kelly Dittmar's research on increasing women's representation discussed by , "Black Women See Progress but Still Face Challenges in Being Elected to Office," The Daily Targum, December 9, 2015.
"Urgency and Optimism: Chisholm's Legacy and the Status of Black Women in American Politics Today," Kelly Dittmar (with ), Huffington Post, November 30, 2015.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on electing a woman president by Jeanne Bonner, "On Major Social Networks, Hillary Tops Bernie 3 to 1" HLN, October 13, 2015.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on Trump's comments towards women, "Trump's Remarks Draw Attention to Women's Issues" WPDE Carolina Live, August 11, 2015.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on Trump's sexist comments towards women by Jay Newton-Small, "Why Women Should Thank Trump" Time, August 10, 2015.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on creating a social media platform devoted to discussing gender-related topics during the 2016 election by Naaz Modan, "Rutgers Center for American Politics Uses Twitter to 'Gender Watch' 2016 Elections" Daily Targum, April 21, 2015.
Kelly Dittmar quoted on gender stereotypes in candidacy and campaigning by Sarah Seltzer, "How Kate McKinnon’s Bonkers ‘SNL’ Impression Could Actually Help Hillary Clinton" Flavorwire, March 11, 2015.
"A Recent History: Black Women's Political Representation," Kelly Dittmar (with ), Huffington Post, February 17, 2015.
Guest to discuss discuss the 2014 midterm elections on MSNBC Melissa Harris-Perry, Kelly Dittmar, May 18, 2014.
Guest to discuss discuss the lack representation for women at the gubernatorial level on Illinois Public Radio Focus with Jim Meadows, Kelly Dittmar, January 14, 2014.
"Women’s Voices and Women’s Votes: Gender and the 2012 U.S. Presidential Election," Kelly Dittmar, e-International Relations, November 20, 2012.
Publications
"A Seat at the Table" (with ) (Oxford University Press, 2018).
Includes unprecedented insights from over three-quarters of the women serving in the 114th Congress. Examines the interactions of gender with race/ethnicity, party, geography, and other factors shaping legislative behavior. Makes a strong case for why women's representation matters in Congress and, more generally, in American politics.
"Navigating Gendered Terrain: Stereotypes and Strategy in Political Campaigns" (Temple University Press, 2015).
Investigates how gender influences campaign strategy using survey and interview data with candidates and campaign practitioners. Considers the ways in which strategic and tactical decisions can influence the gendered nature of campaign institutions.
"Cracking the ‘Highest, Hardest Glass Ceiling:’ Women as Presidential and Vice Presidential Candidates" (with ), in Gender and Elections: Shaping the Future of American Politics, edited by Susan J. Carroll and Richard L. Fox (Cambridge University Press, 2014), 49-79.
Examines gender stereotypes in presidential campaigns, discussing the history of women running and particular candidacies of women for president and vice president in 2008 and 2012.
"A Woman on the Hill: A Front-Row Seat to Women's Impact in Congress" PS: Political Science and Politics 46, no. 1 (2013): 187-189.
Describes experience as an APSA Congressional Fellow and its influence on generating new and innovative research questions and methodology on the impact of women in office.
"Preparedness Meets Opportunity: A Case Study of Women’s Increased Representation in the New Jersey Legislature" (with ), in Breaking Male Dominance in Old Democracies, edited by Drude Dahlerup and Monique Leyenaar (Oxford University Press, 2013), 23-48.
Investigates the history of women in the New Jersey legislature, focusing specifically on the causes – preparedness, opportunity, and critical actors - for the dramatic increase of women from 2004 to 2011.
"Turning the Tables: Behind Every Successful Woman" in Women and Executive Office: Pathways and Performance, edited by Melody Rose (Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2012), 231-258.
Analyzes stereotypical expectations and media coverage of political spouses in the 2008 Democratic primary, focusing on the spousal role as an indicator of the gender dynamics of presidential office.