Unmarried Parenthood and Redistributive Politics

Political survey data for nine West European countries show that women have become increasingly left-wing compared to men, and that this trend is positively correlated with the rise of non-marriage in these countries.This pattern is mirrored in German longitudinal data (GSOEP), where transitions out of marriage make women, but not men, significantly more left-leaning. Analysis of public spending data for high-income OECD countries (1980-1998) suggests that the political impact of non-marriage extends to the allocation of State resources with increases in non-marriage first reducing and then increasing State redistribution towards children.