Moral Ridicule:
Where candidates cited moral or religious motivations for their withdrawal — expressing a desire to
avoid unethical competition or corruption — they were met with mockery and accusations of
hypocrisy rather than engagement with their stated reasoning. (Figure 32).
Examples:
●
— !!!!!!!!!!!!!وهذا أيمانج العميق شعجب هسه يله نبع عن قناعتج الراسخه!!!!! السياسه الدين لهاNow
suddenly your deep faith made you withdraw? Politics has no religion.
●
—اذا صبيحه انسحبت العراق راح ايضيع يمعود رجعهاIf Sabiha withdrew, Iraq is doomed — bring her
back!
Figure 32: Sample of hate speech comments
These comments illustrate the double standards women face as principled decisions are dismissed as
performative and strategic decisions are condemned as manipulation
Delegitimization and Cynicism toward Female Participation
A further category captured direct rejection of women's political participation, reflecting deeply
entrenched cultural attitudes that politics is a male domain (Figure 33).
Examples:
●
ر
ش الزم
— مانطوكم يThey didn’t give you anything anyway.
●
ر ر
أصوات زين سوت١٠ شء عىل
— طبعا تدري ماتحصل اكب يOf course she knew she would only get ten
votes — good that she withdrew.
Figure 33: Sample of hate speech comments
Such statements frame women's involvement in politics as inherently pointless or unnatural,
reinforcing the view that women are outsiders in political life and helping to explain the normalisation
of hate speech against women candidates.
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