Women and Politics

This post was submitted by Jamie Bence, one of WCF’s Summer 2009 Fellows.

Here’s a job opportunity with plenty of openings, even in the ailing economy: Women are needed to run for office.

In Iowa, the Lieutenant Governor Patty Judge has made news in recent days with her calls for more women to enter public service.  She has asked women to serve locally and get involved in their communities (as many of WCF’s newly endorsed candidates are doing).

“I’ve always believed that when women are part of a discussion, the discussion is better,” Judge told the Quad City Times.

In Boston, women are taking a stand against male-dominated city and state politics.  They are fighting hard against the stereotype than women must “man up,” or be tough-as-nails to be successful in public life, instead taking the approach which feels best for them:

Women don’t have to look like Farrah Fawcett to get elected and they don’t have to look like Roseanne either. I support candidates who can make a difference, who are qualified for the job and whom I agree with on the issues.

Only one women (Ayanna Pressley) is currently running for Boston City Council, and one of America’s oldest cities has yet to have even one female mayor!

In the burgeoning city of Omaha, things aren’t much better.  When Jean Stothert was recently elected to the city council, she broke a 12 year streak of all-male members, becoming just the sixth woman to serve since the council was chartered.

Across the country, the GOP is facing a serious crisis in its number of women in state legislatures.  Some within the party have expressed concern that this gap will cause a serious lapse of women on the national party stage, since state legislatures are where they typically are trained.  Out of 50 states, there are just six female governors as of this week.  And Congress is just 17% female.

Clearly, gender parity in public office is not an isolated issue.  It is not limited to federal candidates, any geographic area or political party.

Do you or does someone you know need a little inspiration?  Check out She Should Run, WCF’s award-winning program which encourages women to run for office.