Why players prefer Ashley over Kaidan?

I get a feeling that most players chose Ashley over Kaiden and I am not sure why. I have played trilogy in the most paragon way and Kaidan aligns more with that play style.

Ashley is more brutal, selfish, xenophobic, and sometimes acts like, well, a bitch. She is more hostile towards me and the crew which, surprise surprise, doesn’t make me like her.

Kaidan, on the other hand, is more sympathetic, and is way more “paragon”. So, he seems to fit paragon Shepard more than Ashley.

I read that some players chose Ashley purely because she is a woman which on its own sounds as a silly argument. Unless you really don’t care about either.