The United States Will Keep Failing Women Until We Elect The 1st Woman President

In 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion in its Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s decision. That same year, I worked on Justice Janet Protasiewicz’s campaign for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. 

The connection between abortion and the Wisconsin Supreme Court race? Protasiewicz ran a campaign centered on women’s rights and supporting women’s ability to make their own reproductive healthcare decisions.

The result? She won a historic race that flipped the Wisconsin Supreme Court to an all-women, liberal majority, which is likely going to reverse a century-old state abortion ban this year.

I witnessed firsthand the power of working for – and electing – women leaders who fight for women’s rights. Electing women like this is critical because when these women are in decision-making spaces, they prioritize women’s voices and issues. Reality backs this point, but so does research, which has proven that women in power are more likely than men to address women’s interests. And when women are elected to office, they inspire political engagement among younger women, who are more likely to become involved when they see others like them achieving. 

But the United States has a notable gap in electing women to office: We still have not elected our first woman president. Contrarily, in 2024, voters—for the second time in ten years—checked “yes” to a person with multiple allegations of sexual misconduct and a history of using harmful language towards the opposite sex.

The bottom line is that people were willing to overlook his history of misogyny because they thought he would be good for their pocketbooks. That mattered more to them in the end. 

As the saying goes, “It’s the economy, stupid.”

But in prioritizing other issues over the rights of half of the U.S. population, the country sent a clear message to women: we are failing you.  

Analysis: Why Haven’t We Elected A Woman President

As of this year, 24 women have run for U.S. president—dating back to Victoria Woodhull in 1872. None have succeeded. There are varying schools of thought as to why the country has not elected a woman president in the 21st century, two of which are outlined below.  

Media Coverage

Research demonstrates women politicians receive highly gendered media coverage, and more attention is focused on their appearance and personality. At the same time, their press coverage is often centered on “feminine political issues,” such as healthcare pay and pay equity, and often ignores their positions on “masculine” topics like defense and national security. 

As a communications professional, the role of the media cannot be overlooked (think: the public panic in the news after President Biden’s debate performance, which ultimately led him to step down). So, when the press confirms voters’  pre-existing biases by reporting with a gendered lens, they silo women candidates into specific issues areas, limiting their political potential.   

Read: Arizona Abortions Laws: Looking To A Dangerous Past 

Voters Are Harder On Women

Even in the 21st century, sexism runs rampant—and this impacts the women running for president. Voters tend to believe in the idea of supporting a women candidate, but when it comes down to a real one, they find some reason not to vote for her. Karrin Vasby Anderson summed it up best in her research “Every Woman Is the Wrong Woman.” People view masculinity as so important to the presidency that just being a woman is a disadvantage in a presidential race. 

We can’t ignore that after Harris’ loss, pundits posited that America just isn’t ready to elect a woman. That’s harmful rhetoric because if we uplift this line of thought it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. People will be less likely to support a woman next time if we elevate the idea that a woman can’t win. 

International Landscape

Iceland elected the first democratically-elected woman, Vigdís Finnbogadótti, in 1980; Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan led her party to victory in 1988; Claudia Sheinbaum won in Mexico last year. About a third of UN member states have ever had a woman leader, but not the U.S.

What factors have led to other countries’ successes?

Europe has had many women leaders, which could be attributed to its emphasis on work-life balance, gender quotas in government, and proportional representation – which allows parties, rather than the public, to choose female leaders.

Quota systems have also been effectively employed in the Middle East to elevate women in politics. Professor Marwa Shalaby, a prominent scholar on gender and politics, has researched quota systems extensively and says that they can increase political representation while changing people’s views of women. When the public sees women in government, it proves to them that women can be effective leaders.

This points to the idea that societal culture and type of electoral system make a difference in electing women to office. 

Conclusion:

As a political professional, I know that who we elect and what they fight for matters. As a young woman, I know that who we see doing the jobs we aspire to earn makes us believe we can go after them. And, as a daughter, I want my mother and grandmother to see the first woman president elected.

On the heels of the 2024 presidential election loss, we must keep fighting so that one day we will see a woman in the Oval Office. How? We can get more Democratic women to run for office at local, statewide, and national levels. We can support their campaigns by donating, volunteering, and working for them.

And when the next qualified woman runs for president, we do everything we can to elect them. 

Read: Akshi Chawla: Founder of #WomenLead