More than one hundred countries have now adopted some form of quota to promote women’s representation in politics, often due to international encouragement or pressure. But do quotas impact politics in positive ways--by improving public perceptions of female political leaders or by better representing women’s interests--when they are adopted in countries where women have an otherwise low status? Furthermore, does the international support for quotas condition their impact? The second question is all the more salient in countries where there exist strong sovereign-nationalist or anti-American sentiments. This paper offers answers to those questions using evidence from a novel survey experiment in Jordan, where six seats in parliament were reserved for women in 2003 and increased to twelve seats in 2010. Jordan’s quota offers an interesting case study since it was adopted in a context that is highly unfavorable towards women’s participation in politics when judging from public attitudes as well as other measures. Furthermore, the quota was strongly supported by international actors; advancing women’s political participation has been a key element of democracy assistance programs supported by the United States, European Union, and United Nations in Jordan. Our survey exposes randomly selected participants to a treatment of information about the parliamentary gender quota and a set of actors that have supported it--either American leaders, Jordanian secular public opinion leaders, or Jordanian religious leaders. Respondents’ answers to questions about their support for the quota, willingness to consult with a male vs. female MP, and intention to vote for a woman in the upcoming parliamentary election are then compared across the control and various treatment groups. Results are also analyzed to show how treatment effects vary by factors such as respondents’ gender, religiosity, and education levels. The study contributes to our understanding of the impact of gender quotas (and internationally-supported human rights measures more broadly), how international actors can support women’s political participation and democracy, and the sources that impede women’s access to political power in the Arab world.