MPR’s Kerri Miller on Why More Women Don’t Run for Office

Back on June 26, 2017, Kerri Miller dedicated her program to talking about why more women don’t run for political office. I encourage you to take a half hour and listen to it. Here are some of the highlights of the program.

A recent Politico poll asked women if they have thought about running for political office. The numbers are shockingly low. Only 24% of Democratic women have said they had thought about running, 20% for Republican women.

When women do run, studies show they win as often as men do. Part of the reason our elected bodies are so disproportionate is because women don’t run. Women themselves aren’t seeking office.

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Why women don’t run:

• Young women are not encouraged in their formidable years to run for office. Boys are.
• The financial requirement seems intimidating.
• Imposter syndrome
• Treatment of women candidates is different from male candidates. (Studies are showing this is shifting to be more equitable.)

What we need to do to change that:

• Encourage young women, starting in school, to seek elected office.
• Women need to stop worrying about having “every,” qualification.
• Reframe politics as “serving the community.”
• Start with a local office. Take the first step.
• Run for a nonpartisan position if you are an Independent. Start there and make your mark.
• Embrace motherhood as a positive. Those skills are a benefit to public office.

My closing thoughts

I think there are more reasons and solutions than can be covered in the program’s 30-minute time slot. But, it is a good conversation and well worth the listen. I think these changes are a great place to start. We all need to look around, find those great women leaders and ask them to run.

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