We are pleased to have been chosen as the new coeditors of Politics & Gender. Since its inception in 2005, Politics & Gender has played a central role in bringing new scholarship about gender and politics to a wide audience of readers from scholars in the discipline to interdisciplinary scholars of gender to policy makers and practitioners. It uniquely combines rigorous, methodologically diverse scholarly articles about a wide range of topics with lively discussion about the most important debates on gender and politics by the foremost scholars in the field. The Critical Perspectives section of the journal is widely used in teaching, at the graduate and undergraduate levels, and by those wishing to gain a thorough grounding in recent debates and current trends on such issues as feminist security studies, feminist institutionalism, and intersectionality.
As new coeditors of Politics & Gender, we believe there is a great deal upon which to build. Previous editorial teams have done an admirable job of maintaining high standards of scholarly work and attracting foremost scholars, nationally and internationally, to participate in the journal. The journal editors have a reputation for quick and timely review as well as vigorous efforts to solicit new and exciting scholarship. They have also worked tirelessly and creatively to bring the journal to the attention of scholars and administrators in the discipline and across other disciplines. Indeed, during its relatively short life span, Politics & Gender has become widely recognized as the place where scholars and practitioners can find thoughtful discussion of and research on gender and politics in all the subfields in political science. We are thankful for the competence and dedication of the previous editors of Politics & Gender.
We aim to continue this excellent record of editorial leadership. We are committed to retaining the methodological pluralism and broad subfield coverage of the previous editorial leaders. We are also committed to maintaining the Critical Perspectives section, which allows scholars to problematize foundational concepts in gender and politics as well as to explore and reconceptualize previous methodological and empirical approaches. In order to encompass the rich body of research on politics and gender, we also aim to continue widening the scope and breadth of the journal. A great deal of cutting-edge scholarship on politics and gender in recent years has focused on constructions of masculinity as well as femininity, and on flexible, multiple, and shifting identities encompassed in queer movements and in LGBT politics. Similarly, in such areas as feminist security studies, focus on the gendered body has taken scholarship in new and fruitful directions. We will encourage submissions that reach into new areas of research on a wide range of topics on politics and gender.
A rich picture of gender and its relationship to politics can also be achieved through continuing the journal's attention to intersectionality. This has become a foundational concept in women's and gender studies and should be a strong focus of the premier journal on gender and politics. Indeed, the importance of this concept is reflected by the decision of two separate editorial teams to dedicate a Critical Perspectives section to discussion of this topic. Politics & Gender has made a real contribution to our understanding of intersectionality and the challenges political scientists face in operationalizing this concept. The task facing all subfields in political science now is to utilize intersectionality in new and fruitful ways and to approach it, as Leslie McCall enjoined us, in a methodologically diverse fashion. We believe that Politics & Gender, through the solicitation, selection, and review process, can aid in this important task.
Finally, we believe it is important for the journal to continue to extend beyond its largely liberal feminist roots to include other feminist approaches. A great deal of rich material has been produced by researchers who explicitly adopt such frameworks as the starting point for their analysis. Wearing a gender lens unifies all research and writing in this journal, but the tint of the lens can matter very much indeed. We will encourage submissions from a variety of feminist approaches, including postcolonial and women-of-color feminisms.
In order to explore these and other topics thoroughly, we will offer themed journal issues. These may be combined with book reviews on related themes. We are committed to having a widened breadth and scope of topics reflected in the book review section. At the same time, we want to continue to bring new releases to the attention of Politics & Gender readers in a timely fashion.
We have assembled an editorial team that will help us ensure that the journal continues to offer the best scholarship in the discipline on gender and politics. Our editorial team offers broad coverage of all subfields in political science; thorough grounding in gender and politics and feminist theory; interdisciplinary approaches and collaboration; methodological pluralism; and regional representation. We are delighted to be working with associate editors Celeste Montoya, Sabine Lang, Tom Keck, Patrice McMahon, Martha Acklesberg, Tracy Osborn, and Ange-Marie Hancock. We also look forward to working with the many new members of the Editorial Board, who have responded with enthusiasm to our request to join. We will be assisted in the production process by managing editor Kimberly Gaddie. The editorial office will be located at the University of Oklahoma. The book review section will be produced by Sabine Lang at the University of Washington with the assistance of Emily Christensen.
We would like to thank the previous editors for their excellent stewardship of the journal and, especially, outgoing editor Jennifer Lawless, who has helped make this such a smooth transition. The very capable staff at Cambridge University Press, especially editor Gillian Greenough and peer review coordinator Daphne Carr, have provided invaluable support and guidance during this transition process. We would also like to thank the members of the selection committee: Lisa Baldez, Lisa Garcia Bedolla, Mala Htun, Jane Junn, and Nancy J. Hirschman, who have placed their confidence in us and to the many members of the Women and Politics Research Section who have expressed their support for the journal and our leadership. We look forward to working with all of you to make Politics & Gender a premier journal in political science.
