We’re seeing more women in politics. Is it a quick ‘wave’ or a lasting trend?
Source: The Inquirer
By Joshua J. Weikert,
Coming off the Nov. 5 election, I am prompted to reflect on a feature of our politics that is both a significant challenge and a source of optimism: gender representation. There is a dramatic deficit in the relative number of women in elected office, in Pennsylvania and nationwide, and 2018 saw a record number of female candidates. But was this a lasting change that may help rectify this imbalance, or a fleeting reaction? In studying this phenomenon, I found heartening evidence: Recent increases in female candidacy look more like a trend than a wave.
“Wave” is an awesome and formidable term of art in politics. It describes a powerful surge of public support for a party, interest, or faction, with the power to sweep a great many candidates of like mind or kind into office. However, it should also be noted that — in politics as in nature, a wave is temporary a thing. In addition to rising, cresting, and sweeping to shore, it crashes and recedes. Thus, a surge in the number of women running for (and winning) public office in 2018 is an inspiring sight, but if it is a wave, then proponents of representational equality ought not to cheer.
Click here to read the full article published by The Inquirer on 11 November 2019.
By Joshua J. Weikert,
Coming off the Nov. 5 election, I am prompted to reflect on a feature of our politics that is both a significant challenge and a source of optimism: gender representation. There is a dramatic deficit in the relative number of women in elected office, in Pennsylvania and nationwide, and 2018 saw a record number of female candidates. But was this a lasting change that may help rectify this imbalance, or a fleeting reaction? In studying this phenomenon, I found heartening evidence: Recent increases in female candidacy look more like a trend than a wave.
“Wave” is an awesome and formidable term of art in politics. It describes a powerful surge of public support for a party, interest, or faction, with the power to sweep a great many candidates of like mind or kind into office. However, it should also be noted that — in politics as in nature, a wave is temporary a thing. In addition to rising, cresting, and sweeping to shore, it crashes and recedes. Thus, a surge in the number of women running for (and winning) public office in 2018 is an inspiring sight, but if it is a wave, then proponents of representational equality ought not to cheer.
Click here to read the full article published by The Inquirer on 11 November 2019.