It's time to 'Woman Up' in the Senate

Right now, there are nearly 400 bills passed by the House languishing in what Democrats call Mitch McConnell's "legislative graveyard," better known as the U.S. Senate. 

It’s time for a ‘graveyard’ shift in power ...and the key to shifting the power in the Senate this election will be women! Women voters. Women candidates. This is why I’m devoting all my social media platforms for the next 10 weeks to profiling the women whose wins will change the power balance between political parties and between women and men in the US Congress.

Like the wave of women who ran for the House in 2018 (and I'll be writing about the House next week), there is a wave of women running this year, from both parties. In fact, some states are seeing unprecedented contests with women being the only choice on the ballot. 

On the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, Aug. 18, Republicans Cynthia Lummis and Liz Cheney, and Democrats Merav Ben-David and Lynnette Grey Bull, all beat men in Wyoming's primaries. Interestingly, Wyoming is known as the "Equality State” because it was the first state to give women the vote, but many might argue the state hasn't lived up to its legacy over the years. Wyoming is one of 18 states that has never sent a woman to the Senate. But it will in 2020. 

The current Senate includes 26 women, nine Republicans and 17 Democrats. And although 26% is the highest percentage of women ever in the history of the Senate, we all know it's a long way off from true representation. So, to that end, I want to highlight some of the women — all trailblazers — stepping up and running this year.

I hope you will lift them up and support them in any way you can in the next two months. We can support races that are not in our own states through organizations like Emily’s List that I rely on to keep me informed about congressional races and provide easy ways to support women candidates.

Let's start with the hottest race in the country: Maine.

MAINE - SARA GIDEON

The latest Bangor Daily News poll shows Democratic candidate Sara Gideon leading among likely voters in the closely watched race. We all know Sara Gideon’s opposition, Senator Susan Collins, and the policies and the people she stands for, but I wonder how much we who don’t live in Maine know about Sara Gideon. 

In the past year Sara has visited countless local nonprofits and organizations, focusing on the Independent and Democratic registered voters who outnumber Republicans in the state. From rehabilitation centers to fishing boats on the coast, Sara is dedicated to ensuring Mainers in all walks of life will be well represented in the U.S. Senate. When she is elected, she says her main priorities will be climate change, addressing the opioid epidemic, protecting Social Security, and expanding the Affordable Care Act with the public option that was left out when it was first passed. If elected, she will be the first female Democrat to do so from Maine.

I am looking forward to seeing her on a national stage replacing Susan Collins in the Senate. Learn more about Sara Gideon at her official website.

IOWA - THERESA GREENFIELD?

Iowa is another "toss-up" state and a big reason for that is Trump's support there appears to be falling. It's also one of the states offering two women candidates. First-term incumbent Joni Ernst is one of the few senators who spoke at the Republican National Convention last week and her decision to tie herself to Trump's coattails could hurt her in November. 

Opposing Ernst is Theresa Greenfield, a former urban planner and realtor with no political experience. Like Ernst, Theresa grew up on a farm, worked hard to put herself through college, and settled down to raise a family after graduation. But Theresa’s life was violently uprooted when her husband died suddenly in a work accident, leaving her raising two very young children alone. 

The experience was a formative one and many of her policy priorities — social security, public education, and support for rural communities — are personal for her as she has seen firsthand the benefits and pitfalls of these systems. Theresa has been known to say that “Washington would get so much more done if it worked more like our small towns.” As a small town native myself, I can’t help but agree, and I look forward to seeing her turn Washington on its head as a U.S. Senator. Learn more about Theresa Greenfield at her official website. 

KANSAS - BARBARA BOLLIER

The last time voters sent a Democrat to the Senate in Kansas? 1932.

But this year, many are wondering about the chances of Dr. Barbara Bollier, the Democratic candidate for the open Senate seat there. Dr. Bollier exemplifies what it means to be a woman who speaks up.

As a healthcare professional, Dr. Bollier has always spoken up for women’s rights and access to health care, even when she was a Republican. During her time as a Republican state senator, she was repeatedly removed from chair positions in legislative committees for backing Democratic ideas and candidates. As she told Glamour magazine, “following science really does matter” and she found herself increasingly voting against her party time and time again. 

Finally in 2018, Bollier announced that she was switching parties, telling reporters that Trump and the Republican Party's "absurd" LGBTQ platform pushed her over the edge. “My moral compass is saying, ‘I can’t do this anymore,’ and you throw that in with Donald Trump, and just from a moral position, I can’t be complicit anymore,” Bollier said in an interview with NBC News.

Although Republicans got the candidate they hoped for in Rep. Roger Marshall (instead of less appealing Kris Kobach), don't count Bollier out. She would make history with a win in Kansas. Not only has the seat been Republican for over one hundred years — if elected, Dr. Bollier would be the first woman doctor ever elected to the Senate. Learn more about Dr. Barbara Bollier at her official website. 

TEXAS - MJ HEGAR

If you want a tough but fair woman who boldly saddles up for public service, then you want MJ Hegar representing you in the U.S. Senate. MJ is an Air Force combat veteran who served 3 tours in Afghanistan as a medevac pilot.

When her helicopter was shot down by the Taliban, her injuries left her unable to fly, so she fought for the right to apply for ground combat, opening up hundreds of thousands of jobs for women in the military. MJ carries that same ferocity into her campaign; advocating for accessible health care for everyone, women’s rights, and policies to counteract climate change.

Texas has never elected a Democratic woman to the Senate before now. MJ Hegar exemplifies Texan and American values, and I believe she will be the Texas U.S. Senator we all need. Learn more about MJ Hegar at her official website. 

These candidates inspire me to Woman Up and step up, speak up and support them this November. Join us.

Onward!

— Pat