Dear John,
It’s Women’s Equality Day! 101 years ago today, the 19th Amendment was ratified, granting 26 million women the right to vote in this country.
If you already know how much representation matters because the fight for equality isn’t over, please join us in giving some extra support to our 9 female candidates this year in Virginia. Or, read on for more details.
While the 19th Amendment was an important milestone, it also left out significant numbers of women—most of whom were Black, Asian-American, Hispanic-American, and Indigenous. Over the last century, the fight for women’s rights has continued with the Equal Rights Amendment. Virginia became the 38th and final state needed to ratify the ERA last year.
Despite historic gains in electing women leaders at every level of government over the last 5 years, women still lag far behind in representation. In the U.S. House of Representatives, women comprise just 25% of legislators. And in Virginia, women now occupy 30% of seats in the House of Delegates. It’s an outstanding achievement, yet still a long way from parity.
And women—especially women of color—face many barriers to getting elected that men do not. According to an analysis by government transparency group Open Secrets, in 2020 Black women raised only 53% of the campaign funds that white male candidates raised.
The data is clear: women continue to face disproportionate barriers to elected office, so we must go above and beyond to ensure that they have the resources they need to run winning campaigns.
Please donate now to our slate of 9 women, two-thirds of whom are women of color. We are proud to support these incredible candidates running in Virginia, and we know that together, we can help them win.
In solidarity,
The Sister District Team
