Women made history on Tuesday night, winning more seats in Congress than ever before.
With still some races yet to be called, at least 92 had won in the House and 10 had won in the Senate (joining 10 already in the upper chamber) for a total of 112 women — the most women to serve in Congress at once in history. (The previous record was 107.)1
Women also hit a series of significant milestones. Deb Haaland (New Mexico) and Sharice Davids (Kansas) are the first Native American women elected to Congress. Rashida Tlaib (Michigan) and Ilhan Omar (Minnesota) are the first Muslim women set to represent their states in the House. And at 29, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Abby Finkenauer are due to be the youngest women to serve as lawmakers.
The wave has been building with a growing bench of women candidates who are coming up through various state legislatures. According to Rutgers’s Center for American Women and Politics, the number of women in state legislatures has grown fivefold since the 1970s. These government bodies often serve as a feeder for other statewide offices and congressional roles.2
One of the most valuable outcomes of this year even beyond the numbers is that seeing women in positions of power will increasingly seem normal. A study from political analytics expert Amelia Showalter previously found that when more women are elected to statewide offices like governor, senator, and attorney general, the number of women in the state legislature saw significant increases down the line.3
The United States made a lot of progress, but there is still a long way to go. As other countries have progressed more quickly in adding the representation of women at the national level; in the past two decades, the US has sunk from 52nd in the world for women’s representation to 104th today, according to data compiled by the Inter-Parliamentary Union. In the past year alone, the US has dropped nine places — from 95th to 104th — among more than 190 countries.”4
A 2015 Pew report offered similarly dismal findings. Pew’s survey determined that the US ranked 33rd among a list of 49 high-income countries, trailing Sweden and South Africa in the proportion of women who make up the national legislature.5
A number of other countries around the world have outpaced the US due to national policies, including quota systems, to actively promote women in government roles. It is unlikely that the US will ever adopt a quota system but private organizations are stepping in to build supporting infrastructure. Emily’s List, a Democratic group that helps fundraise for and support women candidates who support abortion rights will spend $37 million on roughly 30 House races during the 2018 cycle. In addition to bolstering candidates’ campaign coffers, the organization is involved in recruitment and training of women. The group saw outreach from more than 42,000 women this cycle. In 2016, the organization heard from just 920 women.
On to 2020!
On to 2020!
- http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/01/26/despite-progress-u-s-still-lags-many-nations-in-women-leadership/
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