What impact do political parties have on women's political representation and on state gender policies? Does this vary at national and local levels? This study looks at the National Women's Ministry in Chile, a country of ideological conflict, strong parties and centralized government and the leftwing Brazilian Workers' Party, characterised by clientelism, weak parties and decentralization.

FIONA MACAULAY is Lecturer in Development Studies in the Department of Peace Studies, University of Bradford, UK. Her research interests, on which she has published widely, cover gender and politics, decentralization and social policies, human rights and the criminal justice system in Brazil and Latin America.