RepresentWomen

Last updated
RepresentWomen
Formation2018
FounderCynthia Richie Terrell
Type501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
82-1933696
PurposePromoting reforms to increase women's representation in political office
HeadquartersTakoma Park, Maryland, US
Executive Director
Cynthia Richie Terrell
Parent organization
FairVote
AffiliationsReflectUS Coalition
Staff (2023)
11
Website www.representwomen.org
Formerly called
Representation2020

RepresentWomen is a 501(c)(3) organization that argues in favor of institutional reforms to help women achieve gender parity in public office in the United States. The organization conducts research and advocacy work to advance women's representation through candidate recruitment rules (i.e. gender quotas for political parties and political action committees), [1] electoral reforms (i.e. ranked choice voting), [2] and the modernization of legislative rules (i.e. onsite childcare and nursing rooms). [3] [4] Their mission, according to their website, is to "strengthen our democracy by advancing reforms that break down barriers to ensure more women can run, win, serve, and lead." [5]

Contents

RepresentWomen, originally called Representation2020, started in 2013 as a project of FairVote, a nonprofit that advocates for electoral reform in the United States. The organization changed its name to RepresentWomen and achieved nonprofit status in 2018. [6]

RepresentWomen is based in Takoma Park, Maryland.

Research projects

The Gender Parity Index

RepresentWomen has put out a Gender Parity Index every year since 2014. [7] [8] This report scores local, state, and federal U.S. governments on the degree to which they are composed of women. [9] Each state is given a letter grade reflecting how close they are to gender parity. [10] Grades are based on a point system measuring the proportion of women in Congress, state legislatures, state executive positions, and local executive positions. [11]

States receive an "A" grade if they score a 50.0 and above, a "B" if they score between 49.9 and 33.0, a "C" if they are between 32.9 and 25.0, a "D" if they are between 24.9 and 10.0, and an "F" if they score below 10.0. [12] "A"-grade states are considered to have reached gender parity across all levels of elected government. The only state to have received an "A" grade on their index is New Hampshire. [13] [14]

With the majority of states ranking between a "C" and "D", the report consistently finds that "women are underrepresented at the national, state, and local level, and that parity for men and women in elected office is unlikely to occur without structural changes in recruitment, electoral, and legislative rules." [15] The 2019 report found that women are less likely to be represented, despite the fact that "women in 2018 filed to run, became party nominees, and won against other candidates like never before." [16] [17]

According to the 2019 index, the 2018 "Year of the Woman" yielded record breakthroughs for women, including the largest-ever class of women in the U.S. Congress, gender-balanced state legislatures in Nevada, and new firsts for women of color, members of the LGBT community, and young people. Still, no state achieved gender parity. [18]

Ranked Choice Voting

In 2016, RepresentWomen released a report titled "The Impact of Ranked Choice Voting on Representation" that tracked how ranked choice voting (RCV) impacted the descriptive representation of women and people of color in the California Bay Area between 2004 and 2014. [19] In San Francisco, for example, the study found that the representation of people of color in 2016 was eight seats higher than it had been before ranked choice voting was adopted. Overall, the report found that women of color won 23% of all seats determined by ranked voting in 2016, compared with 14% before the system was adopted. [20]

In 2020, RepresentWomen released an updated analysis that tracked the impact of ranked choice voting on the descriptive representation of women and people of color in 19 U.S. cities between 2010 and 2019. [21] According to this report, as women won 45% of all ranked choice elections that featured three or more candidates in this frame of time. [22] Overall, the report found that the use of ranked choice voting in U.S. cities "correlates with representation that more closely matches the demographics of America's increasingly diverse voter population." [23]

International Voting Rules

RepresentWomen released an international report in 2018, titled, "Why Rules and Systems Matter: Lessons from Around the World". This report reviewed how different policies and systems affect women's representation in 193 countries and ranked countries based on their levels of women's representation. [24] The research found that proportional representation voting systems and gender quotas were associated with the increased representation of women. [25]

In 2019 and 2020, RepresentWomen produced new iterations of this report. [26] [27]

Quotas for PACs and Donors

In 2016, RepresentWomen partnered with OpenSecrets (CRP) and Common Cause to explore political giving to congressional candidates with a gender lens and create transparency on how political giving impacts the "viability" of candidates. This partnership terminated with the release of a report titled, "Individual and PAC Giving to Women Candidates", [28] [29]

In 2020, RepresentWomen released an update to this report, "The Cost of Electing Women: How PACs and Donors can Make a Difference". The 2020 report measured the impact of campaign finance in the 2018 midterm election cycle and found that political action committees tend to "hedge their bets" when it comes to funding congressional candidates. [30] [31]

Advocacy

Fair Representation Act

RepresentWomen advocates for the implementation of proportional representation in the United States through the use of ranked choice voting and multi-member districts. [32] [33] They identify the Fair Representation Act (HR 4000), introduced by Rep. Donald Beyer Jr., as a way to achieve this reform to electoral systems. [34] [35] [36] The Fair Representation Act emerged from talks between Representative Beyer and FairVote, an organization dedicated to electoral reform. RepresentWomen's executive director Cynthia Richie Terrell played a key role in creating the Fair Representation Act. [37]

Ranked Choice Voting

In addition to advocating for the Fair Representation Act, which would implement single transferable vote in the United States House of Representatives, RepresentWomen participates in advocacy geared towards advancing ranked choice voting efforts in the presidential election.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Proportional representation</span> Voting system that makes outcomes proportional to vote totals

Proportional representation (PR) refers to any type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions among voters. The essence of such systems is that all votes cast – or almost all votes cast – contribute to the result and are effectively used to help elect someone – not just a bare plurality or (exclusively) the majority – and that the system produces mixed, balanced representation reflecting how votes are cast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FairVote</span> U.S. electoral reform organization

FairVote is a 501(c)(3) organization and lobbying group in the United States. It was founded in 1992 as Citizens for Proportional Representation to support the implementation of proportional representation in American elections. Its focus changed over time to emphasize instant-runoff voting (IRV), a national popular vote, and universal voter registration. It changed its name to the Center for Voting and Democracy in 1993 and to FairVote in 2004.

Instant-runoff voting (IRV) is a ranked voting method used in single-winner elections. IRV is also known outside the US as the alternative vote (AV). Today it is in use at a national level to elect the Australian House of Representatives, the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea, the President of Ireland and President of India. In Australia it is also used for elections to the legislative assemblies of all states and territories except Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory, and for the Tasmanian Legislative Council.

The Wish List is a political action committee devoted to electing pro-abortion rights, also called pro-choice, Republican women to the House of Representatives and Senate. The Wish List was founded in 1992. The acronym "WISH" stands for Women In the Senate and House. The Wish List recruits candidates to run for federal office and state legislative offices.

In many countries, women have been underrepresented in the government and different institutions. This historical tendency still persists, although women are increasingly being elected to be heads of state and government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral reform in California</span>

Electoral reform in California refers to efforts to change election and voting laws in the U.S. state of California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ranked-choice voting in the United States</span> Electoral system used in some cities and states

Ranked-choice voting (RCV) can refer to one of several ranked voting methods used in some cities and states in the United States. The term is not strictly defined, but most often refers to instant-runoff voting (IRV) or single transferable vote (STV).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Global Gender Gap Report</span> Index designed to measure gender equality

The Global Gender Gap Report is an index designed to measure gender equality. It was first published in 2006 by the World Economic Forum.

Electoral reform is a change in electoral systems which alters how public desires are expressed in election results.

A unified primary is an electoral system for narrowing the field of candidates for a single-winner election, similar to a nonpartisan blanket primary, but using approval voting for the first round, advancing the top-two candidates, allowing voters to confirm the majority-supported candidate in the general election.

Gender representation on corporate boards of directors refers to the proportion of men and women who occupy board member positions. To measure gender diversity on corporate boards, studies often use the percentage of women holding corporate board seats and the percentage of companies with at least one woman on their board. Globally, men occupy more board seats than women. As of 2018, women held 20.8% of the board seats on Russell 1000 companies. Most percentages for gender representation on corporate boards refer only to public company boards. Private companies are not required to disclose information on their board of directors, so the data is less available.

Unite America is an American grassroots organization founded by Charlie Wheelan with the goal of reforming the political system and bridging the partisan divide. Unite America supports both electoral political reforms as well as independent-minded candidates.

The 43rd Canadian Parliament once again set a record number of female Members of Parliament, with 98 women elected to the 338-member House of Commons of Canada (28.9%) in the 2019 election. Of those 98 women, 31 were elected for the first time in the 2019 election. 2 more women were elected in by-elections in October 2020, reaching the historic milestone of 100 women in the House of Commons for the first time. This represents a gain of twelve seats over the previous record of 88 women in the 42nd Canadian Parliament. By contrast, the 116th United States Congress had 102 women sitting in the 435-seat United States House of Representatives (23.4%).

Gender parity is a statistical measure used to describe ratios between men and women, or boys and girls, in a given population. Gender parity may refer to the proportionate representation of men and women in a given group, also referred to as sex ratio, or it may mean the ratio between any quantifiable indicator among men against the same indicator among women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 Chilean Constitutional Convention election</span> 2021 Chilean Constitutional Convention election

An election for the members of the Constitutional Convention was held in Chile between 15 and 16 May 2021. This election was called after 78% of voters in the 2020 national plebiscite voted to write a new Constitution through this method.

The Punjab Commission on Status of Women (PCSW) is a human rights institution in Pakistan, which was established by the Government of Punjab in March 2014 under the PCSW Act, 2014. Its mandate is to work for the empowerment of women, expansion of opportunities for socio-economic development of women, and elimination of all forms of discrimination against women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fair Representation Act (United States)</span>

The Fair Representation Act is a bill filed in the United States House of Representatives. Originally introduced in 2017 during the 115th Congress by Don Beyer (D–VA), it was reintroduced by Beyer in 2019 and 2021.

The 44th Canadian Parliament includes a record number of female Members of Parliament, with 103 women elected to the 338-member House of Commons of Canada (30.5%) in the 2021 election. Of those 103 women, 22 were elected for the first time in the 2021 election. This represents a gain of five seats over the previous record of 98 women elected at the beginning of the 43rd Canadian Parliament, and a gain of three seats from the record high of 100 women during the previous parliamentary session following by-elections.

References

  1. ↑ Lublin, David (2018-03-05). "Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Matthews Defends New Gender Balance Rules". Seventh State. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  2. ↑ "Engaged Citizen Corner: Ranked Choice Voting". Wicked Local. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  3. ↑ Ellefson, Lindsey (July 11, 2019). "RepresentWomen's Cynthia Terrell on How American Women Can Win at the Ballot Box". The Wrap. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  4. ↑ Tuma, Mary (March 11, 2017). "SXSW Panel: Women's Representation: Five Steps to Win Gender Parity". www.austinchronicle.com. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  5. ↑ "Our Mission". RepresentWomen. Retrieved 2019-07-11.
  6. ↑ "RepresentWomen". www.guidestar.org. Retrieved 2019-07-11.
  7. ↑ Hill, Steven (2014-03-07). "Why Does the US Still Have So Few Women in Office?". ISSN   0027-8378 . Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  8. ↑ Reilly, Maura (November 2, 2020). "This Index Scores All 50 States on Women's Representation. Just One State Scored an A. - Ms. Magazine". msmagazine.com. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  9. ↑ Bland, David Travis (21 June 2017). "When It Comes to Women in Office, South Carolina Scores a D". Post and Courier. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  10. ↑ Stevens, Allison (2019-02-22). "Stronger together, Pa.'s 'Fab Four' women lawmakers make their mark on Capitol Hill". Pennsylvania Capital-Star. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  11. ↑ Richie Terrell, Cynthia (February 2018). "2018 Gender Parity Index". RepresentWomen. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  12. ↑ Ahrens, Corinne (October 22, 2019). "Ms. Magazine" . Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  13. ↑ Hellmich, Rebecca (November 4, 2014). "How Can We Get More Women In Elected Office? Look to New Hampshire". In These Times. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  14. ↑ Richie Terrell, Cynthia; Geist, Gilda (November 11, 2019). "Where does your state fall on the Gender Parity Index?". Gender on the Ballot. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  15. ↑ "2018 Gender Parity Index". Representation2020.com. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  16. ↑ Queram, Kate Elizabeth (October 31, 2019). "Women Still Underrepresented in Elected Office at All Levels of Government, Report Says". Route Fifty. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  17. ↑ Richie Terrell, Cynthia; Lamendola, Courtney (July 2019). "2019 Gender Parity Index". RepresentWomen. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  18. ↑ Demas, Susan J. (October 30, 2019). "Michigan Vaults to the 6th-Best State for Women in Office". Michigan Advance. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  19. ↑ John, Sarah (August 2016). "The Impact of Ranked Choice Voting on Representation". fairvote.app.box.com. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  20. ↑ Burton, Lynsi. "Ranked Choice Voting Gains Traction For 2020". Yes! Magazine. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  21. ↑ Lamendola, Courtney (July 2020). "In Ranked Choice Elections, Women WIN". fairvote.app.box.com. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  22. ↑ Young, Lauren (6 October 2020). "This Voting Method Could Solve a Lot of Problems With Elections". Teen Vogue. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  23. ↑ Lee, Jeannette (2020-10-09). "A Guide to Alaska's Ballot Measure on Election Reforms". Sightline Institute. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  24. ↑ "Current Projects". RepresentWomen. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  25. ↑ Olson, Lynn (May 29, 2020). "Sustained Progress toward Gender Balance in Government Requires Systems Strategies Used Around the World". Montgomery County, MD Women's Democratic Club. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  26. ↑ Risch, Emily (March 8, 2019). "Celebrate International Women's Day with electoral reform". FairVote. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  27. ↑ Vento, Jen (October 30, 2020). "A Conversation with RepresentWomen's Cynthia Richie Terrell: Why Is the U.S. So Far Behind on Parity in Elected Office?". GenderAvenger. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  28. ↑ OpenSecrets, Common Cause and Representation2020. "Individual and PAC Giving to Women Candidates" RepresentWomen. (2016-11). Retrieved 2019-11-13.
  29. ↑ "Individual and PAC Giving to Women Candidates". Common Cause. Retrieved 2019-11-19.
  30. ↑ Reilly, Maura (2020-07-15). "The Cost of Electing Women: How PACs and Donors can Make a Difference". Gender on the Ballot. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  31. ↑ Dittmar, Kelly (October 2020). "Advancing Women's Political Power in the Next Century" (PDF). Boston University Law Review. 100:1165: 1665–1687.
  32. ↑ Dittmar, Kelly (2018-06-12). "Ranked Choice Voting and Women: Q&A with Cynthia Terrell (RepresentWomen)". Gender Watch 2018. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  33. ↑ Dittmar, Kelly (2020-08-12). "Crafting U.S.-specific Solutions". Boston Review. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  34. ↑ "Text - H.R.3057 - 115th Congress (2017-2018): Fair Representation Act". www.congress.gov. 2017-07-14. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  35. ↑ "All Info - H.R.4000 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): Fair Representation Act". www.congress.gov. 2019-08-28. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  36. ↑ "Opinion | Should We Expand the House of Representatives?". The New York Times. 2018-11-14. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  37. ↑ Richards, Parker (2018-10-27). "There's a Better Way to Elect House Members". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
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