June 26, 2018
NEWS & NOTES
A newsletter to keep you informed about all things women and politics from the Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University.

Gender Watch 2018 Conversation on Black Women and Politics
Dr. Wendy Smooth and Karen Finney
CAWP scholar and Gender Watch 2018 Project Director Kelly Dittmar sat down for a conversation about Black women and politics with Democratic political consultant Karen Finney and Dr. Wendy Smooth, Gender Watch expert contributor and an Associate Professor at The Ohio State University. Read the entire conversation here.
 
Also available on the Gender Watch 2018 site are Dittmar's state-by-state primary outlooks for the June 26th primaries in Colorado, Maryland, New York, and Oklahoma. Be the smartest person at your primary watch party by coming prepared with interesting facts like...Oklahoma has only sent two women to Congress in history, the most recent in 2007 and only previously in 1921, the first Congress to follow the ratification of the 19th amendment. Nine women are running in Oklahoma's U.S. House primaries to become the third.
5 Key Data Points on Women Candidates That You Need to Know
At this midway point in the primary season whereby 26 states have held primary election contests, we have analyzed the success of and prospects for women candidates for congressional and statewide executive offices. See our latest post for five key data points by which to evaluate how women candidates are faring this year with necessary attention to historical precedent, partisan differences, racial and ethnic diversity, and general election competitiveness.
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NEW Leadership™: Preparing the Leaders of the Future
Michellene Davis delivers the keynote address
CAWP's NEW Leadership™ summer institute in New Jersey hosted 32 women from colleges around the state for its annual six-day public leadership program. A highlight of the program was the keynote speech given by Michellene Davis, Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer for RWJBarnabas Health who addressed the strength that diversity brings to institutions and how young women can empower one another to create a future where leadership, in every aspect of society, is more representative and more diverse. See her full remarks here .
In training sessions, students developed skills in public speaking, lobbying, advocacy and networking, and participated in a case study that focused on pending minimum wage legislation in New Jersey. During this year's trip to the State House in Trenton, students met with former Senator Diane Allen, had a working lunch with a group of women on Governor Phil Murphy's staff including two NEW Leadership™ alumnae , observed legislative committee hearings and heard from Sue Fulton, Chair and Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, and Marlene Caride, Commissioner of Banking and Insurance.
The New Jersey NEW Leadership™ summer institute is one of many that take place across the country every year; the national NEW Leadership Development Network consists of 26 programs in 24 states. Our newest partners, Washington State University-Spokane and Gonzaga University, will co-host the NEW Leadership™ Eastern Washington  summer institute for the first time in July. For more information about the Development Network, visit our site .
CAWP Welcomes New Communications Specialist
Daniel De Simone
We are delighted to welcome our new Communications Specialist, Daniel De Simone, who comes to us from the New York bureau of one of Japan's leading dailies, The Asahi Shimbun. At the Asahi, Daniel was on the ground in the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake, was at the Supreme Court when Obergefell v. Hodges was announced, has interviewed astronauts, politicians, movie stars, and his personal hero, Beate Sirota Gordon. He once even got sucker punched for a story. At CAWP, Daniel will foster relationships with journalists and work on CAWP publications and social media to help publicize the Center's mission, including this very newsletter, which he is currently writing. He's excited to join the CAWP team and looks forward to a work environment that is presumably somewhat less prone to sucker punches.
To reach Daniel, contact him via email him at ddesimone@eagleton.rutgers.edu , by phone at 848.932.8693, or find him on Twitter @DanielCAWP
Get Ready to Grab the Mic
This Friday, June 29th, CAWP is hosting a public speaking workshop from 9 am to Noon at the Eagleton Institute in New Brunswick. This interactive workshop, designed with women in mind, will focus on effective public speaking and presentation skills. You'll learn how to deliver your message powerfully and how to identify your authentic style. Space is limited, so sign up soon!


Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik says 'Non-traditional' Candidates 'Most Effective' in Congress 

CBS This Morning interviewed Republican Representative Elise Stefanik about her work as the National Republican Congressional Committee's vice chair of recruitment, and the need to recruit more "non-traditional" candidates, like young people, women, and people of color, to run for office.  Rep. Stefanik believes that diverse candidates are more effective, particularly in swing districts, and that women legislators have a greater tendency towards bipartisan cooperation than their male counterparts.
Trump's Meeting About the Border Crisis is Just a Dozen Old White Men

In Marie Claire, Jenny Hollander points readers to the images that came out of President Trump's meeting with members of Congress about the immigration crisis, images that show a meeting almost entirely composed of older white men. The article is sub-headed "There isn't a single woman at the table," and Hollander points out in the piece, "It's not the first photograph taken of an all-white, all-male White House meeting-remember that infamous photo of two dozen men deciding the future of women's health care?-but immigration is an issue that disproportionately affects women and children."
On the same subject, Newsweek uses CAWP data to provide additional context about the gender balance of the Trump administration, particularly as compared to their predecessors, and notes that Wyoming's Liz Cheney was the sole woman legislator in attendance.
The Times-Picayune published an article over the weekend about the growing influence of women legislators in the Louisiana state legislature. Louisiana lags the national average in gender representation to their State Capitol, and the Times-Picayune tracks the barriers and discrimination women legislators have faced there, but notes that the women in Louisiana legislature are becoming a force for compromise in tackling vexing issues in the state.



CAWP continues to be a go-to source for information and analysis in this year's midterm elections. For CNN, CAWP scholar Kelly Dittmar provided key context for a story about how women candidates are a crucial component in the Democratic Party's midterm hopes, while in a New York Times article about Cynthia Nixon's primary run for the New York governor's office, CAWP Director Debbie Walsh talks about the differing preconceptions that women and men face as political candidates.
 

Center for American Women and Politics
Eagleton Institute of Politics
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