Article published in:
Discourse, Politics and Women as Global LeadersEdited by John Wilson and Diana Boxer
[Discourse Approaches to Politics, Society and Culture 63] 2015
► pp. 217–250
Chapter 9. Governors debating
The role of situational, discourse and transportable identities
Karen L. Adams | Arizona State University
An analysis of 21 women campaigning for the office of governor in 10 different states over a twenty-four year period in the US shows how they position themselves as ready for executive leadership. In interactive televised debates, they construct identities designed as convincing, knowledgeable and authoritative and defend them from challenges. Democrats, Republicans and Independents alike claim leadership skills, experience, toughness, and situate these claims to be responsive to opponents’ identities, potential double binds and voter issues. Employing a wide range of discourse identities and linguistic strategies appropriate to the situated context, these candidates, experts in their field, lead us to understand the many different ways they compete to gain the edge in the campaign context.
Published online: 30 October 2015
https://doi.org/10.1075/dapsac.63.10ada
https://doi.org/10.1075/dapsac.63.10ada
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Adams, Karen L.
2018. Chapter 12. Mediated campaign debate subgenre and their importance for analytic considerations.
In Doing Politics [Discourse Approaches to Politics, Society and Culture, 80],
► pp. 281 ff. 
Cameron, Deborah & Sylvia Shaw
2020. Constructing women’s “different voice”.
Journal of Language and Politics 19:1 ► pp. 144 ff.
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