POLI 330N Week 5 Assignment: Representation in Congress | (GRADED A)

Representation in Congress Representation in Congress It h as not always been common for women to hold congressional office or even make it to congress. Today, more women are being elected to congress like never before, due to more women voting than men (Sanbonmatsu, 2020). Changes in policies, laws, social roles, activists, political parties, and organizations are some of the reasons why women now hold seats in congress. In the 1990’s the number of women elected to Congress increased. The house had 48 women and the senate had 7. Women in the 115th Congress, 23 held seats in the Senate and 88 in the House. A few women have gained important party and institutional leadership posts. Most notable among them is Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who became the first female Speaker of the House in American history after the Democrats won a House majority in 2006 (Greenberg & Page, 2018). Some groups have no interest in politics, this is due to barriers that give a disadvantage to women over men. Woman are faced with a lot of roadblocks such as costs when thinking about running for office. Campaign funding tends to be an issue for some women groups due to their business or social networks that would not support them financially during a political campaign compared to men. Women are also stereotyped as being weak and associate leadership predominately to men. Work-family obligations is another reason why some groups tend to be underrepresented. Since Jeanette Rankin, the first woman to win election to U.S Congress, women and minorities holding offices in Congress have increased. Openly gay and lesbians in Congress have increased. In 2012, Tammy Baldwin became the first openly gay member of the Senate. Barney Frank (now retired), a Democratic member from Massachusetts, became the first openly gay House member in 1987, but today there are seven openly gay House members, all Democrats. In 2014, there were two openly gay Republican House candidates, but both lost their election campaigns. (Greenberg & Page, 2018). Women and minorities voices are being heard. Women want to work across party lines and are more collaborative and results-oriented than the males who tend to allow their egos to get in the way. Women of color who represent a record number of members in the 114th Congress stresses how important it is to include their perspectives along with minority communities in the policymaking process (Shames, 2019). I think women and minorities contribute in a positive way when it comes to Congress’s business. Women and minorities are collaborative and can work across party lines to get the work done for the people. Getting involved with women movements, contributing financially, and advocating for more women and minorities. Help and support the efforts that are already in place to support the women who’s pushing for political equality. Help change polices that give women and minorities a disadvantage over men and we can do this by getting out and voting. References Greenberg, E. S & Page, B. I. (2018). The Struggle for Democracy, 2018 Elections and Updates Edition. (12th ed.). Pearson. Sanbonmatsu, Kira (2020). Women’s Underrepresentation in the U.S. Congress.