Dear John,

On election day this past Tuesday we saw major wins for women candidates across the country. We celebrated Michelle Wu becoming Boston’s first woman and first woman of color elected as mayor, along with Elaine O’Neal, who became the first Black woman elected mayor of Durham, North Carolina. In the race for mayor of Atlanta, Felicia Moore finished first with 41 percent of the vote and will advance to the November 30 runoff, where she will face City Councilman Andre Dickens. 

And in a history-making first, women will hold the majority of seats on the New York City Council. As our colleagues at Represent Women write: "Nearly a century after the first woman was elected to the NYC council, women now hold 61 percent of the seats and the majority of those women are young women of color … more than double the current Council’s class of female leaders."

It looks like paid leave will be included — as of now — in the Build Back Better (BBB) Act that is being considered by the House (although we can’t celebrate until we see what happens in the Senate). In Ms. this week, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), who has fought for years to pass a paid family and medical leave bill, explains that paid leave is a lifeline for struggling families. “We can build the architecture of the future, but without a permanent paid family and medical leave solution, workers are at risk of losing their livelihoods, and the U.S.’s economic recovery is at risk of stalling,” she writes. 

As we await the Supreme Court’s decision on SB8, Texas's six week abortion ban, we take a look at the long road trips to crowded clinics in other states that confront women and girls seeking abortions in Texas now — and that will become reality for those in many other states should Roe v. Wade be overturned. The Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case that the Court will hear on December 1 is a direct challenge to Roe. Ms. is following both cases and will keep you up-to-date with expert analysis and reporting.

For equality,

Kathy Spillar
Executive Editor
 

P.S. I’m excited to announce Ms.’s newest project, in collaboration with the Brennan Center: an 11-part essay series titled “Abortion is Essential to Democracy.” We launch this coming Tuesday, along with our video collaboration with NowThis! Stay tuned – you’ll have access to everything at Msmagazine.com.