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Southeastern Institute of Women in Politics aims to close politics' gender gap
After Jenny Horne, a Summerville attorney, narrowly lost a special House election in 2006, she salved her wounds with tips on how to win next time.
An event put on by the newly formed Southeastern Institute of Women in Politics showed Horne how to win.
"I learned about fundraising, campaigning, grass-roots organizing," said Horne, who won that same Charleston County House seat in 2008. "Everything I learned was very useful. And I heard it from women lawmakers who've run themselves and done it successfully."
Today the institute, a nonpartisan nonprofit that encourages and supports women interested in running for office, will hold a press conference and reception to embolden more women to run for office and to urge voters to support them.
The events come a few days before the convening of the General Assembly, which has no female senators and only 17 female House members out of its 124 state representatives.
South Carolina ranks last among states in female representation in state government, although more than half of voters are women.
In 1992, the state's high mark, 22 members - or nearly 13 percent of the General Assembly - were female.
"I was a page at the State House that year. We're going in the opposite direction of where we need to be," said Horne, who is an incoming institute board member.
In the state's last general election, 24 S.C. women ran for the House or Senate and 17 won.
The institute's goal: triple the number of women running for office in 2012 and maintain that lead in the 2014 elections.
"I noticed a disturbing trend a few years ago. Fewer and fewer women were running for office in South Carolina," said Skip Webb, a long-time political consultant and founder of the institute.
"Something had to be done to reverse that process," said Webb, whose clientele does not include any institute participants.
Why does female representation matter?
Some research suggests women do a better job of representing voters.
A 2009 study by Stanford University and the University of Chicago found women in Congress introduce more bills, attract more co-sponsors and bring more money home to their districts than their male counterparts.
On average, women brought about 9 percent more money to their districts than men, according to the study, which evaluated the performance of U.S. House members from 1984 to 2004.
"That says a lot about women's focus on public policy and delivering for their district rather than focusing on the politics of their role," said Barbara Rackes, an institute founder and board member.
Women, who represent about half the state's population, also bring a different and important perspective to creating laws, Rackes said.
"Women tend to focus more on issues of the family, of health, of education," Rackes said.
Such a female and family focus could be useful. According to a 2008 study by the Institute for Women's Policy Research, South Carolina ranks in the bottom third of states in women's earnings, women's educational attainment and the number of women living in poverty.
Institute board members say it's not adequate to encourage women to run. They must be shown the ropes.
The institute has held seven campaign training schools thus far and plans another in Moncks Corner in February.
"I know we're impacting women," said Heather Hoopes-Matthews, the institute's spokeswoman. "They tell us they have a greater understanding of how to run and now they know there's a network to support them."
The State
By GINA SMITH
gnsmith@thestate.com
Reach Smith at (803) 771-8658.
Reprinted in:
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