Women Legislators in Central AmericaDuring the years between 1980 and 1999, in the midst of war and economic crisis, a record number of women were elected to national legislatures in Central American republics. Can quantitative increases in the presence of elected women in Central America produce qualitative political changes? In this detailed study, Michelle A. Saint Germain and Cynthia Chavez Metoyer explore the reasons for this unprecedented political rise of women, and what effect