The Challenge
Women make up more than half of the U.S. population, yet the majority of elected and appointed positions in government are held by men.
Political insiders control who gets recruited to run for office, partisanship and winner-take-all voting often determines who wins, and antiquated legislative rules impact who can serve and lead.
The problem isn't just convincing more women candidates to run for office. The problem is there are structural and institutional barriers that limit women's odds of success at every stage of the electoral process.
The Solutions
To advance women's representation and leadership in the United States, we need to complement existing candidate-centric practices with innovative systems strategies.
Electing more women to government will strengthen our democracy by making it more representative, reviving bipartisanship and collaboration, improving policy outcomes, encouraging a new style of leadership, and cultivating trust in our elected bodies.
Women Running
Recruitment targets for political parties so more women run.
Women Winning
Ranked choice voting for executive & legislative offices so more women win.
Women Serving
Modern rules like onsite childcare so more women can serve effectively.
Women Leading
Rankin Chisolm Rule for political appointments & hiring so more women lead.
How You Can Help
Join the work for systems strategies that address the structural barriers women face & enable sustained progress toward gender balance in representation and leadership in the United States.
Electeds
You've been elected to public office, and want to push for reforms
Donors
You want to contribute to allow us to keep doing our work
Allies
You're an allied organization, influencer, or shaping the conversation
Journalists
You're writing about gender parity and systemic reforms
Get Involved
New from RepresentWomen
Weekend Reading on Women's Representation February 26, 2021
Posted on February 26, 2021
The hours of daylight are growing here in the mid-Atlantic and I am eager to get my seeds in the ground which seems like a perfect metaphor for the work we are all doing to advance women's leadership and representative democracy - planting ideas that will eventually grow and flourish. This piece in The Fulcrum that features a conversation between young democracy advocates Katie Fahey and Zoraya Hightower (who is the first woman of color on the Burlington City Council) suggests that the seeds of electoral reform that some of us began planting a generation ago have taken root and are thriving
Read MoreWeekend Reading on Women's Representation February 19, 2021
Posted on February 19, 2021
used to give up wine or cocktails, and when I was younger, chocolate. With everything going on in our world, giving up alcohol or sweets seems so 2019. Last year in 2020 — and again this year — I am giving up the patriarchy for Lent. This year my decision is more than symbolic. Women lost more than 5.4 million jobs in 2020. During the first 10 months of the pandemic, women — particularly women of color — have lost more jobs than men as industries that employ women have been hit the hardest. The #SheCession is, in itself, a national crisis. Further, women-owned businesses are suffering as we have seen women across the country step up to both provide care for elders, neighbors, as well as become homeschool teachers.
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