Long Road Ahead for Women Seeking Office
February 7, 2009
RULES OF THE GAME
DESPITE GAINS MADE IN 2008, THE CAROLINE KENNEDY SENATE DRAMA REVEALS OBSTACLES LEFT TO BE OVERCOME
Caroline Kennedy may or may not succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton in the U.S. Senate next year. But in one respect, Kennedy is already walking in Clinton’s shoes: Her campaign to convince New York Gov. David Paterson to tap her for Clinton’s soon-to-be-vacant seat has pushed gender politics front and center yet again.
Women had much to celebrate and to bemoan in this election, say political observers. “2008 was extraordinary, and in some ways painfully ordinary,” said Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University’s Eagleton Institute of Politics.
Kennedy is arguably no less prepared for public office than a long list of men who entered politics after careers in professional sports.
On one hand, the candidacies of Clinton and of GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin made history, drawing national attention to women voters, to media coverage of female candidates, and to work/family issues. As Walsh put it: “Gender was front and center from beginning to end.”
On the other hand, despite some significant female gubernatorial and Senate wins, the number of women serving on Capitol Hill will increase by only a handful in the next Congress. And in the state legislatures, the percentage of seats held by women will jump by only a small fraction — from 23.7 percent to 24.2 percent, according to a report [PDF] by Walsh’s organization.
“We saw, ultimately, very little change in the numbers of women holding office pre- and post-election,” Walsh said. At this rate, she added, “It’s going to be a long time before we see anything resembling parity in the House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate.”
Of course, the debate over whether Kennedy should succeed Clinton is not just about gender. It’s about the political and class privileges that come from being a Kennedy. The daughter of former president John F. Kennedy, Caroline Kennedy would hold the seat held by her late uncle, Robert F. Kennedy. If appointed to succeed Clinton, who is President-elect Barack Obama‘s choice for Secretary of State, Kennedy would have to seek election to serve beyond 2010.
To read the complete article, visit: http://www.nationaljournal.com/njonline/rg_20081219_6673.php