Raising Ms. President: Why Don’t Women Run in Politics?

Did you know that women make up 51% of America, but only 17% are serving in the House of Representatives as spokeswomen? Or that only 34 women have served as governors compared to 2319 men?

America now ranks 98^th in the world for percentage of women in its national legislature, behind Kenya and Indonesia and barely ahead of the United Arab Emirates.

What is wrong with these numbers?

Raising Ms. President is a thought-provoking documentary that helps give insight into the disparity of gender in politics.

The documentary describes that the presence of women in political decision making makes a difference, but women often do not want to run. Even starting from youth, girls do not get the same encouragement as men when growing up. Yet politics shapes our lives in everything from education, women’s rights, children’s vaccinations and environmental policy.

The difference is quite apparent in this inforgraphic from the Raising Ms. President website:

It’s time for change.

We need a new perspective in Washington.

What is holding women back from holding more spots in office? The statues and monuments of George Washington, Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt need a few women as well. Harriet Tubman, Eleanor America, Marie Curie, and many more amazing women have done brilliant things, although I don’t see any DC monuments in their likeness.

This country began by taking a stand against the British. Our founding fathers wanted to be independent in what they believed in, worshipped and be free. Isn’t it time to have appropriate representation of different perspectives, colors, races, genders, ages and incomes to reflect our desires?

The Case for Women in Power

Colorado has been rated as one of the best places in America to live, and happens to have 42 women representing in government, leading the nation.

On the other hand, Kentucky is doing poor economically and educationally. They happen to have a majority of men in office.

Especially with so many policies affecting women directly, women need to be at the table. Women aren’t often included in legislation that directly impacts women. Recently, eight men in the House considered a bill that impacted women’s reproductive rights. (Women legislators also used humor to create anti-vasectomy legislation to turn the tables.)

Women leading in office can make a difference in our lives.

So how can we initiate a movement for more women in government?

Encourage women with potential. There’s a large chance brilliant women are actually too nervous to run. But there are plenty of programs initiating this change, including Running Start, IGNITE, Missrepresentation, and the White House Project.

Interestingly enough, women are much less likely to think they are qualified to run for office versus men.

I was privileged to get to meet a few inspiring Philly women, whom all hold government office. Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown, Rep. Mary Jo Daley, Rep. Pam DeLissio, and Ms. Katie McGinty all came to the screening of Raising Ms. President. I found their advice and all their stories very moving.

The overarching theme of each of the local speakers are that women need to stand up for what they want. Although it may seem a bit scary at first, it pays off! Each of these women worked hard to earn their roles and exemplify their words of wisdom.

Readers, what do you think we can do to help increase equal representation in government?