Women who seek political office in the United States have faced and continue to face an uphill battle. Nevertheless, those who have made it have become very visible, vocal and influential. Some examples include: Bella Abzug, U.S. congresswoman (D-N.Y.), 1971-77, first Jewish woman in Congress and the first woman elected to Congress on a women's rights/peace platform. "We don't so much want to see a female Einstein become an assistant professor. We want a woman schlemiel to get promoted as quickly as a male schlemiel." -- American Chronicle, 1987

Dianne Feinstein, U.S. senator (D-Calif.), 1992-, mayor of San Francisco, 1978-88, first woman to represent California in the U.S. Senate. "Toughness doesn't have to come in a pinstripe suit." -- Time, 1984

Pat Schroeder, U.S. congresswoman (D-Colo.), 1973-1997, first woman elected to Congress from Colorado, first female member of Congress with young children. "I have a brain and a uterus and I use them both." -- quoted in American Political Women by Esther Stineman, 1973

Ann Richards, governor of Texas, 1991-95, the first woman elected Texas governor on her own merits. "My grandmother, for a period of her life, couldn't vote. The law said Ôimbeciles, idiots, the insane and women' could not vote in Texas. And within that same single lifetime, I became the governor of Texas. What an incredible change that is." -- Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 1996

Hillary Clinton, U.S. senator (D-N.Y.), 2001-, First Lady, 1993-2001, the first First Lady elected to the U.S. Senate and the first woman elected statewide in New York. "Women who pack lunch for their kids, or take the early bus to work, or stay out late at the PTA, or spend every spare minute tending to their aging parents do not need lectures from Washington about values." -- Commencement speech, Wellesley College, 1992

Elizabeth Dole, Secretary of Transportation, 1983-87, Secretary of Labor, 1989-1993, Republican U.S. Senate candidate for North Carolina, 2002. "The time is ripe for a woman president. Definitely in our lifetime. There are many women who are prepared." -- Parade Magazine, 1999

The past 30 years have seen American women explore outer space, run Olympic marathons and sit on the highest court in the land. Why hasn't one become President of these United States?

Simply put, it's a guy thing.

Early in its history, the United States emphasized gender over class as the basis for political rights and made the white male the empowering category in the culture, said Kathryn Kish Sklar, distinguished professor of history and co-director of the Center for the Historical Study of Women and Gender. "America made a successful experiment in enfranchising men without property well ahead of Great Britain, where the class system was much stronger," she added.

Yet as the 19th century progressed, in spite of being unenfranchised, American women contributed to the political culture through their social activism in the areas of abolition, prison and labor reform, and temperance.

Sklar notes that American women achieved unprecedented clout in society as various factors coalesced during the Victorian era. "Domestic feminism," or a woman's demand of her partner's sexual abstinence as a form of birth control, meant mothers with fewer children could spend more time raising each one. The mother's role as nurturer superseded the father's former importance as disciplinarian, and thus required women to receive more education to satisfy this new societal charge, Sklar said. The "schoolmarm" of the American frontier was a direct result of this surge in the number of educated women in the late 1800s, as was the growth of powerful organizations such as the Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU).

The WCTU voted to support women's suffrage in 1880, and as the Progressive Period got underway, these educated, socially conscious women dealt with various industrial issues. Sklar notes that the women of middle-class America rallied for fundamental labor rights, which was the goal of working-class men in other countries, notably Great Britain. For example, the National Consumers League, created in 1898, lobbied for minimum-wage protection for female workers. By 1915, 22 states had such legislation for women only, and the minimum wage wasn't extended to men until the New Deal in 1938.

Newly enfranchised women received a less-than-cordial welcome from the Republican party in 1920, Sklar said. "They told women to lose their agenda of social issues," she said. "So the women's organizations turned to promoting women's rights after suffrage, such as getting women on juries."

As a result, younger women aligned themselves with the Democratic party, which already espoused concern regarding social-justice issues. "It's no surprise that the first woman appointed to a cabinet position, Frances Perkins, was made Secretary of Labor, rather than Secretary of Education or Health, because women had always been so mobilized by labor issues," Sklar said.

Since World War II, America has experienced a roller coaster of economic booms and busts, political conservatism and societal liberalism. Throughout it all, it has remained difficult for women to get elected.

A vocal minority

Although there is now a record number of women serving in Congress -- 60 out of 435 in the House, and 13 out of 100 in the Senate, noted Debbie Walsh '79, director of the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) at Rutgers University's Eagleton Institute of Politics as well as director of CAWP's Program for Women Public Officials, there's still "nothing resembling parity," as she put it.

The post-census redistricting of Congress in 1992, which made more seats available to female political newcomers, contributed to this current highwater mark of women in Congress. But Walsh notes it is their gender that makes women candidates most appealing during times of voter frustration. "When people want change in politics, when they're sick of corruption and back-room deals, then women become attractive candidates because they look different -- they look like change," she said.

In spite of their relatively small numbers, women legislators have been successful in pushing issues onto the national agenda. In the post-Cold War era, so-called "women's issues," which focused on health, education and employment, have become mainstream voter concerns, and the relatively few women politicians have been the ones to push through relevant legislation in recent years, Walsh added.

The fundraising hurdle

Women are effective national legislators, but getting elected still requires substantial fundraising, which many female candidates feel uncomfortable doing on their own behalf. They hesitate to take the bold move of stepping forward to announce their candidacy, Walsh said. "Men are predominantly self-starters in politics; women wait to be asked -- but politics isn't a dance," she added.

Fundraising is not the only issue that deters many women from seeking national office, said Alexandra Acker '00, who assists Chair Nita M. Lowey (NY-18) of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in Washington, D.C. Acker has heard from women politicians with young children at home that Congressional seats in Washington are less attractive because it's easier to juggle family and job at a local level.

The still-powerful women's organizations are well positioned to overcome these financial and personal hurdles, said Sklar. They can raise campaign money and provide excellent advice about key election issues, she said, adding that the financial support of Emily's List, a woman's organization that supports the election of women to local and state office in preparation for national campaigns, correlates strongly to women candidates winning their elections.

Randy Stokes '70, executive assistant to Nita Lowey since 1994, notes that Lowey successfully combines a typically female approach to problem solving with a strong partisan stance. "She works to get things done by consensus, rather than contention," Stokes said. "It's part of her personality, and she works hard to reach out to all parties." Choosing to mediate rather than fight has established Lowey's reputation as one who delivers to her constituents, Stokes adds.

While Lowey isn't blind to the prejudices and obstacles that women face in politics, she won't let them deter her -- she excels despite them, Stokes said. Lowey's determined message to all women candidates -- "women should have the opportunities to make a difference in this world" -- makes Walsh think there's a Madame President out there somewhere, despite the money and machismo that currently deters them from aspiring to the Oval Office. "I have twin 12-year-old daughters, and I hope to see a woman president in their lifetimes," she added.

-- Katherine Karlson '74

Watch for an interview of New York State Assemblywoman Michelle R. Titus '90 (31st Assembly District) in a future issue of the Binghamton Alumni Journal.