Is the U.S. ready for a female president?
It’s hard to say exactly which woman America would choose, but I believe now more than ever that Americans are ready for a female president.
What led to this change? Why are Americans ready now more than ever? I believe that 2014 marked the pivotal moment for deciding to have a female president. There were three major cases that, in my opinion, lead to this decision.
1. Breaking Barriers in Washington:
While this isn’t something that happened in 2014, the election of our first-ever minority President, President Obama, most definitely broke the glass ceiling in Washington. In 2008, when President Obama first ran for the presidency, voter turnout increased by 5 million, with significant increases in voting by Hispanics, African Americans and young voters. The 2012 Presidential Election, however, saw a slight decrease in voter turnout, but overall voter turnout was still fairly high. I believe that these two elections brought in more voters because people saw this as a chance for change, and now that we have broken the race barrier, people are wanting to break the next big barrier: the gender barrier. According to a Gallup poll, nearly 80% of voters said that they are ready to elect a female president. Nearly 3/4 of the country thinks that we will elect one in 2016 and 49% of voters said that they would be more engaged in the 2016 election if a woman threw her hat into the ring. 75% of voters argued that a female president would be a good thing for the country. As we have seen in the past 2012 election, more women have been elected to governmental positions (which is a great thing since men still dominate the political sphere) and voters have stated that they think the country would be better off if there were more women in office.
2. Revival of Feminism:
2014 was a major year for the revival of the feminist movement. 2014 brought about the HeForShe Movement initiated by UN Women. HeForShe, a movement for gender equality, aims to involve men and boys in the fight for gender equality. Many of the celebrities we love, such as Emma Watson, Taylor Swift and Lena Dunham have spoken out about female equality issues this year and several male celebrities have spoken out as well and joined the HeForShe Movement. Who would understand female rights better than a woman? According to a poll by U.S. News, nearly half of voters say that a female president would do a good job at safeguarding women’s rights.
3. Politicians Are Saying It’s Time:
More well-known politicians have stated that they think that America is ready for a female president. The most recent, First Lady Michelle Obama, made it clear that America is ready for a female president. In an interview with ABC’s Robin Roberts, the First Lady stated that “what we have learned is that the person who can do the job doesn’t have a particular race or gender or background or socioeconomic status. The person who should do the job is the person who is the most qualified, and I think we have some options, don’t we?” Condoleezza Rice, U.S. Secretary of State under the George W. Bush administration stated in an interview with iVillage president Deborah Fine that “there’s no doubt in my mind that America is ready for a woman to be president.” Even Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) stated in an interview with CNN’s Piers Morgan he “had a very different reading of the political scene” than Representative Michele Bachmann (R-Minnesota), who recently stated that America is not ready for a female president. Senator McCain cited the growth of women in Congress as well other governmental positions.
So if the United States is ready for a female president, who will it be? Certainly people are turning to Hillary Clinton, former U.S. Secretary of State, U.S. Senator and wife of former President Bill Clinton. Although she hasn’t officially thrown her hat in, she has definitely dropped hints. Clinton has the lead among Democrats for the 2016 election. If Clinton doesn’t run, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) will most likely be the liberals’ 2016 alternative candidate.
If either one of these two ladies were to win the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination, it would be a historic event in and of itself. If they do win the presidency, they will have further the position of women in the political world. The data and these events clearly demonstrate that Americans are ready for a female leader. If that’s any indication, 2016 could be the year for women in politics.