In an effort to understand how Republican congresswomen are able to successfully maintain support in an increasingly polarized political environment, this thesis examined the communication methods of the four most bipartisan current congresswomen in the party. Their communications and messages were evaluated through textual analysis, contributing to the creation of a profile of each congresswoman which also accounted for their background as an individual and politician. It was hoped that the analysis and findings resulting from each profile
could more broadly contribute to a discussion of the steps the Republican Party could take to improve its brand and appeal to a more diverse portion of the electorate.
Representative Elise Stefanik, Senator Susan Collins, Senator Shelley Moore Capito and Representative Susan Brooks were each selected for their high rating on the Lugar Center’s Bipartisan Index. Each member’s Facebook account, Twitter account, website, newsletters and press releases published between January 3 through February 3, 2019 were analyzed as available.
It was found that two of the congresswomen, Stefanik and Collins, used their communication channels to establish themselves as more moderate members of the party,
avoiding controversial topics or highly partisan positions on issues. Brooks and Capito, however, painted themselves much more conservatively, openly promoting not only their personal
conservative positions on issues, but actively expressing support for the GOP and its agenda. Because each of the four members are fairly ideologically similar to each other, with the slight exception of Collins, this distinction between the members and how they are choosing to position themselves in the eyes of their constituents likely relates directly to their constituency’s ideology in relation to their own. The moderates tend to focus on how they are serving their constituents rather than on the Republican platform or large issues in the news cycle, while the members with more conservative constituencies lean in to the Republican agenda.
If the Republican Party is to maintain its relevance and appeal to a broader and more diverse portion of the American electorate, it should alter its tone when speaking about platform positions, discussing how its positions benefit different groups of Americans. Doing so would begin to address the negative associations the party has gained in recent years. The words and actions of party leaders, who happen to be predominantly male, are of the utmost importance in allowing the women of the party the freedom to take greater liberties in expressing their
ideological positions. Allowing the women of the party to have a greater role in setting the tone of is one of the most authentic ways to draw more women during elections. If the party’s leaders wish to expand its base and accessibility, it should share the reins with members who relate to its female audience in a way that its current white male leaders cannot.
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