Editor’s note: This commentary is by Ruth Hardy, who is the executive director of Emerge Vermont and a member of a local school board. She lives in East Middlebury with her husband and three children.
Are you a woman who is frustrated by the state of politics and political leadership in America? Did you weep on Nov. 9 and then commit to political action on Nov. 10? Are you angry that your voice is unheard, your issues ignored, your presence missing? Then let’s get to work.
You marched on Saturday, now, as President Obama said in his farewell address, “Grab a clipboard, get some signatures, and run for office yourself!”
Local elections in Vermont are just weeks away, and petitions to run are due to town clerks’ offices on Jan. 30. You can do this, yes you. Run for public office because Vermont needs your voice, your issues, your presence in every town in our state.
The vast majority of public office-holders in Vermont are elected in March on Town Meeting Day. In 2017, this beloved and important day of Vermont political engagement is Tuesday, March 7. Citizens will elect new town moderators, mayors, school board members, town clerks, library trustees and city councilors or selectboard members.
These local officials make decisions that affect local economies, educational priorities, transportation routes, social services and civic endeavors. They facilitate public dialogue, make key appointments and decide how our communities will spend public dollars. They are important leaders in our towns and cities, and most of them are men.
Emerge Vermont recruits, trains and inspires Democratic women to run for public office. We’ve heard from scores of women since the election, and worked to channel some of their political ire toward increasing the number of women running for local office.
As of 2015, women made up only about one-fifth of local town board/council members, with just 16 percent of those boards led by women. And while 90 percent of our town clerks are women, women are far less likely to be appointed or elected to executive positions. Only about one-third of town managers and administrators are women, and only one of Vermont’s eight mayors is a woman.
School boards are the only elected bodies in Vermont that have reached statewide gender parity, as 51 percent of school board members were women in 2015. However, these percentages vary widely by county, with Essex at 71 percent women and Bennington at 41 percent.
It’s not simply important to have women in elected office to achieve mathematical equality, however. It’s important to have women at decision-making tables because women in office make our democracy stronger. Women are often more able to work toward consensus, especially when faced with important and difficult issues such as annual budgets or large-scale projects. Women bring different issues and perspectives to the table, often focusing more on equality, access and service.
Our democracy is stronger when it is reflective of the people. If significant groups of people are left out of the democratic process, such as women, people of color, immigrants or young people, then our public institutions will not be working at full strength or drawing from the talents and ideas of all our citizens. Diverse groups make better decisions, and our local office-holders are far from demographically diverse.
After Election Day, when our country elected an openly misogynist bully rather than an exceedingly qualified woman, thousands of women were spurred to greater political engagement. We need many of these women to run for local office, especially because with an unstable and malicious federal executive, our local and state government actions will become increasingly important to protect, support, and motivate people and communities.
Emerge Vermont recruits, trains and inspires Democratic women to run for public office. We’ve heard from scores of women since the election, and worked to channel some of their political ire toward increasing the number of women running for local office.
In most of our small towns, it’s not difficult or expensive to run for office. But, navigating the local power structure and challenging the quintessential “old boys’ network” can be daunting, especially for those new to the process. Emerge is currently offering monthly workshops to give women a taste of the full Emerge training program, and to help them prepare for running for office in their towns.
We have engaged the “new girls’ network” to ensure that women who want to run are connected to Emerge alumnae, supporters and leaders in their communities. We know we have inspired women in towns throughout the state to run for both school and town board seats.
Applications for the full training program will open in May, but before then, we hope women across Vermont step up to run for office this March. Public service can be energizing and exhausting, but most of all, it’s crucial to a strong, inclusive, vibrant democracy. So, women of Vermont, “grab a clipboard, get some signatures, and run for office!” Let’s get to work. We have glass to shatter.
