More Than A Magazine, A Movement
Just nine women currently serve as governor in the United States—a “record” first set in 2004 and achieved two additional times, but yet to be broken. In over 200 years that this nation has existed, only 45 women total have been elected as governors.
This year, there are 25 women running for governor. Women’s ability to adapt and navigate through times of uncertainty makes women exceptionally qualified leaders, thus demonstrating the need for more women governors.
This year, young people make up one in three of all eligible U.S. voters. And voter mobilization groups are helping to channel their concerns into votes, especially in the battleground states.
As women from Tehran to Texas continue to fight fearlessly for basic respect and human rights, men have a choice to make: Do you stand with those women? Or do you sit this one out?
Will you go out and vote as an act of solidarity with the women you love and have always claimed to respect and support?
U.S. patriarchal authoritarianism is on the rise, and democracy is on the decline. But day after day, we stay vigilant in our goals to dismantle patriarchy at every turn. The fight is far from over. We are watching, and we refuse to go back. This is the War on Women Report.
This month: The anti-abortion movement frames its tactics as “pro-woman,” Kanye West claims Black women are engaging in genocide, the House Committee votes to subpoena Trump, Brittney Griner’s appeal is rejected and more.
Twenty-six states already have state-level Equal Rights Amendments. Advocates are fighting to make Nevada the 27th state by passing the most comprehensive ERA in the country.
If passed, the Nevada ERA would be the first time that an equal rights amendment explicitly protects people on the basis of sexual orientation and gender expression.
Ahead of the midterms, feminist and civil rights groups are urging Michiganders to vote yes to Proposal 3, a ballot measure that would add an amendment to the state constitution explicitly establishing the right to abortion, as well as a broad range of other reproductive healthcare, including prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, sterilization, miscarriage management and infertility.
The ballot measure will determine whether the state’s 1931-era abortion ban can remain on the books—a law prohibiting abortions without exceptions for rape, incest or health of the pregnant woman. (It only allows abortions that “preserve the life” of a patient.)
People think elections are run by a boogeyman—a faceless man behind the curtain, pulling the strings. But, the truth is, elections are run by everyday people with familiar faces—the face of my grandmother, the face of your uncle, our neighbors, friends. People who believe the right to vote is precious and should be protected. People who believe what I do: that elections are the lifeblood of our government.
The ballot is our greatest equalizer. It is how we can give everyone an equal voice and an equal impact on our government. But that is only true if people show up to the polls, cast their vote and trust the results.
Millions of American women—including the remarkable wave of women voters who registering for the first time—are currently at risk of being prevented from casting a ballot that counts. The reason? Voter ID laws that create additional barriers and cause confusion and uncertainty about people’s ability to vote.
Making sure that women know the precise documents they’ll need on Election Day will ensure they can have their votes counted with minimal bureaucratic hurdles.
Twenty-first-century citizens should embrace the opportunity to vote. They should study their ballots. They must research politicians, their positions on key issues, and their proposed policies.
If we expect the government to provide services such as national defense, education and health services, the best we can do is show up to the voting booth prepared. Citizens owe it to the country to inform themselves about the options before stepping into the ballot box. Citizenship is not free from obligation. In the United States, voting is a right. But we should treat it as a privilege and cherish it accordingly.
A significant portion of young women are already making plans about where they are willing to live and work based on whether abortion is protected or banned in states, according to new Ms. magazine and Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF) polling by Lake Research Partners across the nine battleground states of Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
