Congress has a diversity problem

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Feb 24, 2023 View in browser   By Sophie Gardner POLITICO illustration/Photos by Getty Images/iStock Good morning, rulers! I’m coming to you from Boston, where the snowstorm was mild but it’s still unpleasant outside. Send your favorite indoor Friday night activities to sgardner@politico.com or @sophie_gardnerj (Board games? Binge-worthy shows?). In 2005, Rep.-elect Jennifer McClellan first began working in public service, representing Richmond in the Virginia House of Delegates. It was a space where McClellan, a Black woman who was 32 at the time, saw several stark differences between herself and the other delegates: “It was mostly white Republican men over 50,” McClellan told Women Rule. In just over a month, the Democrat will be sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives, after winning a special election and becoming the first Black woman to represent Virginia in Congress. But some of the lack of diversity McClellan noticed in state government in 2005 might also plague the 118th Congress. While more diverse than any other Congress before it, members are still much more likely than the U.S. population to be non-Hispanic white people (75 percent vs. 59 percent), according to a Pew Research study. The amount of non-white people in Congress has been increasing steadily since the late 70s, but so has the population of non-white people in the U.S., meaning that representation is still lagging. The gap is about the same as it was in 1981. This Congress also has more women than any before it, but women of all races also still face a representation gap: they make up roughly half of the U.S. population, while less than a third of Congress is female. And they make up a much larger share of congressional Democrats (41 percent) than Republicans (16 percent), according to a Pew Research analysis published in January. “What continues to surprise me is how slow the progress has been,” said Drew DeSilver, a senior writer at Pew Research Center who researches women in Congress. But diversity in Congress is more than just a percentage. It also has real effects on policy. Research shows that lawmakers are more likely to advocate for constituents who share aspects of their identity. “In recent years, any action that's been done and trying to push for childcare, family leave, the care economy, which dropped out of the build back better bill, those things have really been pushed by female senators,” said Michele L. Swers, a Georgetown professor and the author of Women in the Club: Gender and Policy Making in the Senate. “And when you bring more diverse women into Congress, you also see them bringing their perspective of both being a minority and a woman into how they view issues.” Michael Minta, a professor of political science at the University of Minnesota who specializes in race and ethnic politics, found in his research that Black lawmakers were often more likely than other racial groups to advocate for policies that could benefit underserved communities. Minta also noted that these differences don’t always show through on voting records, “particularly in this polarized era that we’re in,” as lawmakers usually vote along party lines. “But when you start looking at things like going to hearings and speaking out and advocating and bringing insights and experiences to the table when people are making policies, that's when you really see the impact of race and ethnicity,” Minta told Women Rule. McClellan is no stranger to letting her identity shape her politics: she’s done it before as a state senator. She was especially passionate about the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which passed in the Virginia state senate in 2020, because she knew what it was like to try to balance a job and a pregnancy. “As the first pregnant delegate, I saw how pregnant workers are not accommodated,” McClellan told Women Rule. “Those are stories that were never told before.” She plans to keep bringing her unique perspective – including her parent’s experiences living through Jim Crow and the Depression – to the table in the House of Representatives, as Virginia joins only 22 other states in sending a Black woman to Congress.   Sponsored by Business Leader members of Women Rule: The Exchange: More than 800,000 women are still missing from workplaces compared to pre-pandemic levels, according to the National Women’s Law Center. So, what must happen to improve the future of work for women? POLITICO Focus connected with members of Women Rule: The Exchange to discuss driving positive change. Read more here.   MUST READS Drew Angerer/Getty Images “Marianne Williamson planning 'important announcement' in March,” by Kierra Frazier for POLITICO: “‘As America gears up for the 2024 presidential election, I’m preparing an important announcement on March 4th in Washington DC,’ Williamson said in a statement that listed factors that ‘propelled me to explore the possibility of running for the Democratic nomination for president in 2024.’ “In an interview Friday, Williamson indicated she would run as a Democrat, teeing up a potential primary challenge against President Joe Biden.” “Haley: CNN anchor's age comment 'rolls off my shoulders'” by Mia McCarthy for POLITICO: “Lemon, who hosts ‘CNN This Morning’ with co-anchors Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins, said Thursday morning that Haley ‘isn’t in her prime’ and that a woman is ‘in her prime in her 20s, 30s, 40s.’ He apologized for the comments on Twitter on Thursday afternoon, calling his words ‘inartful and irrelevant.’” Number of the Week Read more here. 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A 15-year-old girl in the region has a 1 in 40 lifetime risk of dying of a cause related to pregnancy.” “Women from the ‘60s Black Panther movement talk with female activists working today,” by Valerie Russ for The Philadelphia Inquirer. “Disinformation Campaigns Against Women Are a National Security Threat, New Study Finds,” by Astha Rajvanshi for TIME: “Not only does gendered disinformation lead to the backsliding of women’s rights and democracy as a whole, but the study found that gendered disinformation also becomes a national security threat when foreign actors use it to exploit divisions in society.” “Linda King Newell, Feminist Scholar of Mormon History, Dies at 82,” by Clay Risen for The New York Times. “A Race Up the World’s Tallest Mountains, and for Gender Equality,” by David Gardner for The New York Times.   Sponsored by Business Leader members of Women Rule: The Exchange: In The Round: A conversation on the new rules of work.   Quote of the Week Read more here. Transitions The Hub Project has added Allyson Marcus as deputy executive director for campaigns at and Chrystian Woods as a senior director for campaigns. Marcus most recently was political director at American Bridge 21st Century and is an Antonio Delgado and DCCC alum. Woods most recently was senior adviser to the Georgia Coordinated Campaign and is an American Bridge and NARAL Pro-Choice America alum. … Amanda Hobby is now digital director for the House Oversight Committee. She previously was digital director for Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.). … Mercedes Osma-Peralta is now counselor for press and public affairs at the Colombian Embassy in D.C. She most recently held the same role for the Colombian Embassy in London. … Nefertiri Sickout is now SVP of equity, diversity and inclusion at Share Our Strength. She previously was chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer for the Philadelphia mayor’s office (h/t Playbook PM).   Sponsored by Business Leader members of Women Rule: The Exchange: When it comes to the state of work, there’s good news and bad news for women. Research from McKinsey, in partnership with LeanIn.Org, found that female leaders are leaving their employers at never-before-seen rates, often in exchange for opportunities that prioritize flexibility and wellbeing, along with diversity, equity and inclusion. And yet, more than 800,000 women are still missing from workplaces compared to pre-pandemic levels, according to the National Women’s Law Center.  Now, business leaders and employees alike are considering what’s next. What must happen next to improve the future of work for women? POLITICO Focus sat down with members of Women Rule: The Exchange to discuss how women are driving change in the workplace, and what organizations and policymakers can do to join them. Read on to learn what needs to happen to help all women thrive at work.     Follow us on Twitter Katelyn Fossett @KatelynFossett   Follow us

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