Women’s role in politics has constantly been growing throughout history. Long before the 19th Amendment was passed, women influenced politics as lobbyists, activists, and fundraisers, and they have always had a role in social movements. The birth of Women’s Rights in America can be traced to the Seneca Falls Convention of 1848; the first ever Woman’s Rights Convention in the United States. Since then, the growth of women in the public sphere has continued. Women even directly participated in government before being able to vote. Jeannette Rankin became the first woman elected to Congress in 1916. It wasn’t until four years later that she was able to vote herself and even longer until women of color were able to vote.
The ratification of the 19th Amendment was due to the dedicated work of women such as Alice Paul and all of those involved in the Women’s Suffrage movement. One of the most memorable moments of the movement was the Women’s March in D.C., one day before the inauguration of Woodrow Wilson. 5,000 women took part in the protest advocating for Women’s Suffrage on March 3rd, 1913. The women chose to wear white. At first glance, this may seem like a color picked simply to show unity between the protesters, but the decision was much more meticulous than that. Photography was only in black and white at the time, so any color would not come through noticeably, except for white. Furthermore, white cloth was affordable, and most women had something white to wear. These factors made white the best possible choice to let the women stand out. It worked, and the protest became a very important moment in history. To this day, women politicians will wear white to pay homage to women who fought for the right to vote. You may have seen Kamala Harris in white as she accepted her nomination as the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party. That decision can be traced back to the success of this protest from over 100 years ago.
Since women have been able to vote, their involvement in politics has grown enormously, and we’ve seen many firsts. In 1948, Margaret Chase Smith became the first woman elected to the Senate without first having been appointed. In 1968, Shirley Chisholm became the first black woman in Congress and even ran for the Presidency. In 1981, Sandra Day O’ Connor became the first woman on the Supreme Court. In 2016, Hillary Clinton became the first woman to be a major party’s Presidential nominee. She went on to win the popular election by nearly 3 million votes, but lost the Electoral College vote. She was the closest a woman ever came to the Presidency until Kamala Harris’ run last year as the second woman, first Black woman, and first South-Asian person to be a major party’s Presidential nominee. Feminists across the country got their hopes up only to once again be left wondering if we will ever have a woman president.
The gender gap in politics is at a critical point. After the 2024 election, many women across America felt a personal loss–not necessarily a political loss, but a loss in the pursuit of breaking the glass ceiling. The ‘glass ceiling’ is a metaphor used to describe an invisible barrier keeping women from attaining the presidency. Despite all the progress we have made since that first Women’s Rights Convention at Seneca Falls, the glass ceiling is indicative of a much larger problem, that women are underrepresented at all levels of political leadership globally. For example, in America, only 28% of the 119th Congress is female. That is 28% to represent half the population.
The seemingly un-electability of women to the presidency is disheartening. After the election my first thought was could someone like me ever be president? I worry that I will never live to see the day that just as many men as women hold seats in our government. Representation matters because it ensures that there is someone in power looking out for our interests. It makes “of the people, by the people, for the people” a reality. But true representation isn’t possible if only 28% of our Congress is female. Do any of our leaders truly care to create an America for women?
Unfortunately, how the public views the gender gap has changed for the worse. According to a Pew Research Study in 2018, 59% of Americans thought there were too few women in high political offices. There has since been a decrease down to 53%. It’s frightening to think that we could actually be backtracking in our views of women’s participation in government.
But how do we reverse the trend? There are no laws blocking women from the Presidency. There is no clear object to fight against, just people’s opinions, and the subconscious stereotypes that they have against women. Women have always worked to lessen the effect feminine stereotypes have on their perceptions. This had led to women politicians having to spend lots of energy on their appearance. All politicians have to present an image to the world. For men, that means wearing a suit and having a forgettable haircut. For women, it means something else entirely. Depending on your party you have two choices: the first being to resemble a reality star in a work dress, and the second being to look like a sixties housewife in a pantsuit. Both looks aim to portray women perfectly. Embody femininity yet project masculine decisiveness. Embody beauty, yet show that you aren’t obsessed with your looks. Embody a leader but also be the lovable damsel in distress. Women have to wear makeup in order to look professional, but not too much makeup, because that would be scandalous. Dressing the part of a female politician takes effort. Any woman in the business world is always weary of her appearance, because she is judged on it more than the man is.
The majority of Americans agree with this and believe that the media plays a large role in perpetuating stereotypes about women. 62% of Americans say there is too much focus on women candidates’ physical appearance and that there is not enough focus on women’s views on key policies and other key positions. 47% say there is too much focus on the personality of women running for office whereas 39% say the same about how the media treats the men. This is highly concerning, considering the rapid growth of social media as an outlet for news and information.
Moreover, the gender gap doesn’t only affect politicians, it impacts everyone, especially students. Emily Appelbaum ’27 said,, “Women have to work twice as hard for the same results, and not even the same results because we aren’t seeing women make it as far as men in terms of success.” We still haven’t broken the glass ceiling, and much of America is wondering what can be done to get to that point.
A key way to address the issue has been through activism and spreading awareness. However, the gender gap in politics can be a difficult subject to discuss. Advocating for women entails highlighting their accomplishments. While this might seem good at first, it has created a world in which we prioritize evaluation a politician’s gender instead of their actions. Whenever a woman is successful, they are making an accomplishment for all women everywhere; it is no longer about the actual accomplishment.
Appelbaum said, “I want my accomplishments to be recognized because they’re mine, not because of my gender. Women empowerment is super important, but the opposite effect can happen, when a person’s accomplishments are no longer about them as a person, but only about one aspect of their identity, their gender.” Fixating on the gender gap can actually perpetuate this divide. If women’s accomplishments are only remembered because they are the first women to do so, then it reduces them to women who are in politics, not politicians.
Furthermore, the gender gap is a polarizing topic. It causes divisions between people depending on their age, party affiliation, and gender. The difference in political beliefs based on gender can be somewhat shocking. By gender, 63% of women think there are too few women in office, whereas only 42% of men agree. This trend points to the underlying issue–that women care more about equal representation based on gender than men do. Until we can find a way to tackle the gap as a society, we won’t be able to close it.
Despite the problems in society, not all hope is lost. 52% of Americans believe that as more women run for office, it is only a matter of time before there are just as many women as men in high political offices. So much has changed over time, so it makes sense that there is more change to come. Hopefully, it will be soon. Appelbaum said, “I really hope we can have a female president someday, and I think we will, maybe not tomorrow, but sometime soon.”
Representation matters because it ensures that there is someone in power looking out for our interests. It makes “of the people, by the people, for the people” a reality. But true representation isn’t possible if only 28% of our Congress is female. Do any of our leaders truly care to create an America for women?