Elect women — but not just because they’re women

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/08/2024 (438 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

“Elect Women.” Not only is it a personal mantra, it’s also a phrase plastered across my favourite sweatshirt.

I bought the shirt back when I was still a politician and proudly wore it to community events in my constituency and on the campaign trail. Nowadays, I can be seen wearing this frayed and well-loved shirt while traipsing to yoga practice or for a mid-afternoon stroll through Henteleff Park.

Electing women is a great idea and a noteworthy cause. I believe that until we achieve parity in public office, we’re not going to see public policy attuned to and reflective of the needs of the majority of people living in our democratic society.

Take for example, child care.

If this area of public policy had been addressed 25 years ago in a meaningful way, we wouldn’t be dealing with the challenges of our times where families must begin planning for child care even before getting pregnant. Sure, there were women elected 25 years ago when this need started to burgeon with urgency, but they were outnumbered by a wide margin.

Public policy did not reflect societal demand because, in part, a lack of representation.

Even today, women only hold between 25 and 30 per cent of elected positions in legislatures across the country and the House of Commons. Ask anyone of them and I’m sure they’ll tell you that being a minority among decision makers requires a lot of heavy lifting.

Speaking from experience, it’s not always easy to cut your own path, even when it’s the right thing to do. I can point to numerous things I could have, and perhaps should have insisted upon, yet didn’t. My hope is that the next generation of women politicians do not find themselves a minority while sitting around decision-making tables.

In this way, I wear my shirt proudly and am always excited to support women on the ballot.

Having said all that, do I believe women should be elected based specifically or solely on their gender?

Not at all.

Yes, representation matters a great deal, but when I cast a ballot or decide to support a candidate, what matters most is picking someone I believe is qualified and competent, and if they happen to look like me, all the better. But it’s not a deciding factor.

I’m not alone in this, either. According to a team of researchers at Pew Research Center south of the border, they found that only 18 per cent of Americans believe it’s highly important to see a woman elected as U.S. president in their lifetime.

Put another way, what matters most to voters is electability over representation.

Hopefully, the Kamala Harris campaign takes note, and does not repeat history of allowing a gender narrative to be the lead in the story of her future electoral success, or defeat, come November. We can all do without ever seeing a repeat of headlines from the post-Hillary Clinton era, declaring that she lost because of her gender, and that America wasn’t ready for a woman president. This unfairly placed the blame for Clinton’s electoral defeat on all of us feminists who supposedly hadn’t done our part in breaking down barriers, as opposed to squarely at the feet of a poorly executed campaign.

This time around, my hope is that Harris will offer voters an opportunity to choose a proven candidate who is not only electable, capable, and competent, but is also representative of women and minorities. Let her be judged, appraised, and voted into the highest office in that country based on merit, intelligence, and because she’s the better candidate.

Gender shouldn’t be positioned as a crowning achievement, but rather the icing on a cake.

Likewise, in my lifetime, I’d like to see a woman prime minister elected in Canada once again sometime soon. But more importantly, I want her to be someone who will flourish in principles of good governance that will earn respect here at home and abroad, to be someone to advance public policy that enhances all our lives in ways that matter most, and to represent values reflective of most Canadians.

When that happens, she’ll leave a legacy for future generations and a belief that women can run in elections and win because they are strong, capable and competent. Not because they checked a box and are merely an emblem representing something greater.

Let her be elected because she’s the real deal.

Rochelle Squires is a recovering politician after 7 1/2 years in the Manitoba legislature. She is a political and social commentator whose column appears Tuesdays.

rochelle@rochellesquires.ca