Minnesota’s largest women’s PAC significantly impacts the 2012 candidate field

Saint Paul, MN — Looking to increase the number of women serving at all levels of office in Minnesota, Women Winning is pleased to announce that nearly 100 of their pro-choice endorsed women will appear on the ballot this November.

This strong slate of endorsed candidates, led by U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar and Congresswoman Betty McCollum, follows the launch of Women Winning’s Statewide Candidate Recruitment Program and recent legislative winning streak. Women Winning endorsed in five of the six legislative special elections called in 2011 and all five endorsed women won — Rep. Carly Melin, Sen. Mary Jo McGuire, Sen. Chris Eaton, Sen. Kari Dziedzic, and Rep. Susan Allen.

“A major investment has already paid off,” said Lauren Beecham, Executive Director of Women Winning. “With our candidates running in some of the most highly competitive races of the cycle, our candidate recruitment program has yielded our strongest slate of pro-choice women candidates in the thirty-year history of our organization. We know that when women run, women win — and Women Winning is poised to help elect more women than ever before.”

In 2012, Women Winning expanded its political program, recruiting and endorsing more women candidates than ever before. This year’s candidate class includes Women Winning endorsed candidates and strong, pro-choice incumbents running in metro, suburban and rural districts. Women Winning’s endorsement comes with significant power. Cycle to date, Women Winning has raised nearly one million dollars in both direct candidate fundraising and support for its political and educational programs.

This year women are poised to make major political gains as the War on Women has galvanized women across the nation. Fueled by the continuing rhetoric and commentary surrounding reproductive rights and debates surrounding women’s social, economic and political status, women and men alike are expected to take the polls to support pro-choice women candidates and incumbents. Early on this cycle, Women Winning determined that state legislative races are where it could make the biggest gains for pro-choice women – regaining seats women lost in 2010. Many outside organizations involved in the political process jump into races spending money on independent mail, radio and TV advertisements a few months before the election once the slate of candidates is already established. Women Winning has gone in a different direction starting at the beginning of the political process – recruiting excellent women leaders to become candidates – and it has paid off. Some of Women Winning’s endorsed candidates are running in the most highly-targeted legislative races in the state, offering strong alternatives to the scrutinized status quo.

About Women Winning

Women Winning’s mission is to encourage promote and support pro-choice women’s leadership in all political parties and levels of public office. Women Winning runs a smart, targeted political program focused on districts deemed winnable for pro-choice women candidates with the goal of increasing the number of women serving at the state legislature to help reclaim pro-choice majorities in both the State House and Senate.

Women Winning was established in 1982 by 25 multi-partisan pro-choice women who wanted to increase the number of women in public office. Thirty years later, Women Winning is the largest and most influential statewide women’s PAC in Minnesota. To learn more about Women Winning, go to www.womenwinning.org or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.