On election night we watched the good news pour in. With a record number of women running for public office in 2018, it was no surprise that a flood of women won elections across the country on November 6. At least 101 women will be joining the ranks of Congress -- the largest amount of women in history to walk the halls of the Capitol building as national elected officials. On top of that, many of these women are bringing with them an unprecedented representation. We have the first Native American woman, first Muslim and youngest woman elected to Congress. These accomplishments deserve the excitement that they have stoked.
Just to put this in perspective, it really is a sea change. In my short millennial lifetime, we have seen exponential growth in women’s representation. The year I was born, 1985, there were only two women in the Senate and 23 women in the House. Then we had the “Year of the Woman” in 1992. In 2019, we expect more than 23 female U.S. senators and 101 female U.S. representatives in a #WomenWave. This is tremendous progress. As we inch toward parity, perhaps in a not-so-distant future this will not even be newsworthy and instead will simply be the status quo. This work has not happened on its own. Organizations like Rutger’s Center for Women in Politics, Vote Run Lead, and Emily’s List have been leaders in providing research and resources and in cultivating women to run for public office for decades. And yes, we have seen undeniable progress.
Now, what does electing women to Congress have to do with the environment?
We know that for the past several decades women have voted more pro-environment than their male counterparts. According to research by Rachel’s Network and the League of Conservation Voter scorecards, women have voted more pro-environment than men -- regardless of party -- every year since 1990. With the growing number of women in Congress, this is good news. We can count on women not just to support “women’s issues” but also to prioritize clean air, clean water, and climate action.
These findings are an extension of differences in public opinion between men and women on a range of scientific topics. Women believe the risk of climate change more than men. For example, when asked how serious a problem climate change is, women in the U.S. are significantly more likely than American men (by a margin of 17 percentage points) to say it’s a somewhat or very serious problem. The Trump administration has attacked scientific integrity and interfered with people’s ability to make decisions about their health and lives -- weakening public trust in the government. With attacks ranging from reproductive health to clean air and water to workplace safety, representative leadership is critical to reveal these abuses, hold appointees accountable, and pass protective laws.
Women get things done. Time and time again, researchers find that diversity of thought leads to better problem solving -- when we collaborate with people of different genders, sexual orientations, ethnicities and race in our workplace, we all do better work. Furthermore, researchers have found that women are better at making deals in the Senate than their male peers -- collaborating and working across party lines in greater numbers than the men. In a political environment fraught with gridlock and pressure for environmental action mounting, collaboration and innovation will be critical.
By no means does electing women guarantee environmental action. But it does provide the much needed hope that the future is forging a new path. Together, we have an opportunity to write a powerful history.