Women make up just 20% of seats in Congress, 24% of state elective executive offices, and 25% of state legislatures seats across the U.S., according to data from the Center for American Women and Politics. She Should Run wants to change that.
The nonpartisan organization focused on helping women run for office launched a 250Kby2030 campaign to reach gender parity in politics by 2030. Both She Should Run and Emily's List, a Democratic women-centric political action committee, have had more than 15,000 women come forward wanting to run since the 2016 election. There are roughly 500,000 elected positions in the U.S., and She Should Run wants women to make up half.
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"Now we need to take the next step to transform that number into the over 250,000 women candidates needed to have women’s voices fully represented on ballots across the country,” said Erin Loos Cutraro, founder and CEO of She Should Run, in a press release. “250Kby2030 gives us a long-term goal with tangible steps that will result in concrete results in 2018 but also each and every election thereafter."
RT if you agree: It’s time for women to have an equal voice. Now, lets make it happen https://t.co/o0saHPZsu6 #500ksteps #sheshouldrun pic.twitter.com/EbmePFiFmL
— She Should Run (@SheShouldRun) January 19, 2017
At the current rate of progress, the U.S. won't achieve gender parity in politics until 2117.
"That is unacceptable and 250Kby2030 will change that," Cutraro said.
However, this won't come easily. Who has political funding plays a huge role in who's elected to office, and although organizations such as the nonpartisan, but left-leaning Center for American Progress (CAP) suggest reducing the role of big money to help more women succeed in politics, that isn't likely to happen any time soon.
She Should Run certainly plans to try to put womens' names on ballots, though. The 250Kby2030 campaign will focus on a mentorship program pairing aspiring candidates with experienced female politicians or candidates, creating a technology platform to connect women within their communities, and helping aspiring candidates find the resources they need.
"As leaders working to strengthen our democracy," Cutraro said. "It is our duty to provide the pathway for women today and tomorrow who are stepping up to serve their communities."