Diverse Women in Politics: Kelly Dittmar | Future Hindsight

Kelly Dittmar is the Director of Research at the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University. She explains why diversity among women serving in public office enhances our democracy, and how we can support more women to run and win elections.

Motivations and Perspectives

The goal of promoting women to run for office is not simply to achieve parity in Congress or in State legislatures. Rather, it should be to recognize that women offer a variety of perspectives and lived experiences that men lack. In addition, women have faced more barriers than men to be elected and are generally more motivated to get things done. 

Confronting Our Biases

Toughness, experience in national security, and negotiating tactics are often thought of as ideal leadership qualities, which are viewed as inherently male characteristics. Although female leaders do often possess these skills, championing women also means that we need to confront such biases and value traits like compassion, cooperation, and consensus building skills.

Women’s Interests

All women, like all men, are motivated by a large number of factors in forming political opinions. Our senses of identity are not solely based on gender, which is why there is no such thing as the “women’s agenda.” Women see the world through racial, social, and class identities, which often conflict with and supersede gender identity. However, these factors do intertwine with gender in public policy decisions.

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