On the Fence to On The Ballot: How She Should Run’s Erin Loos Cutraro is Working to Put More Women in Office

Welcome to B The Way Forward: Interludes – a mini series of special episodes and conversations that stand apart from our regular season, but are just too good not to share.

Last night was election night in America, and as we publish this episode today (November 6th, 2024) we can say that it was historic – but not because the US elected its first female president. Once again, the highest glass ceiling was cracked but not shattered. 

Kamala Harris wasn’t the only woman on the ballot this election. According to the Center for American Women and Politics, 289 women ran for the House, Senate, and Governorships and hundreds more ran in state and city elections. And yet, CAWP’s analysis shows that women made up only about 27% of candidates this cycle. That’s actually down 2% from 2020.

How can our government represent us all when 51% of the population isn’t equally represented in public office? And in our current era of intense polarization and heated political rhetoric, how do you even convince women that running for office is worth it?

On this episode of B The Way Forward, Brenda sits down with She Should Run Founder and CEO Erin Loos Cutraro to unpack those questions. They talk about the forces stacked against women who might otherwise run, how they can be overcome, and how to respond to the bad faith arguments leveled at attempts to diversify public office. 

“I couldn’t get over the fact that the research, and it’s still true today, shows that when women run for office, they win at the same rate as men. And I couldn’t stand the fact of knowing there were so many women who weren’t even in this space to consider their own leadership and that we just needed some kind of effort that would speak to them.”

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At AnitaB.org, we envision a future where the people who imagine and build technology mirror the people and societies for whom they build it. Find out more about how we support women, non-binary individuals, and other underrepresented groups in computing, as well as the organizations that employ them and the academic institutions training the next generations.

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Our guests contribute to this podcast in their personal capacity. The views expressed in this interview are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology or its employees (“AnitaB.org”). AnitaB.org is not responsible for and does not verify the accuracy of the information provided in the podcast series. The primary purpose of this podcast is to educate and inform. This podcast series does not constitute legal or other professional advice or services.

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