Montana sees most female statewide candidates in decades
Female candidates are positioned to make significant gains in Montana this election year with the highest number seeking statewide political office in at least three decades, including races for governor, U.S. House and other high-profile posts.
Montana was the first state in the nation to elect a woman to Congress, before women in most of the U.S. could even vote. State voters haven’t sent another female lawmaker to Washington since Jeanette Rankin was elected to the U.S. House in 1916 and then returned for a second term during World War II.
Eleven women are in the running for statewide offices heading into the June 2 primary, including five Republicans, four Democrats, a Green and a Libertarian.
“Women in general are running more and more,” said Sara Rinfret, who chairs the Public Administration and Policy Department at the University of Montana. “These women are pushing back against the idea that it’s an exception and attempting to make it the norm, to make sure the next generation has that chance.”
Ballots for the mail-in election went out to voters Friday. Polling stations will be closed due to the coronavirus.
https://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/montana-sees-most-female-statewide-candidates-in-decades/article_3431d57e-0bc4-56fd-8932-ef6dde3dd296.html?mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiT1RCa1lqQmtNakZsT1RWayIsInQiOiJDWHM5cExHRDRqZWxTYzBYU1R0c1pUdm9DY1RzTnRvZldNYkpzY1hPQXd5VER3QXA5MlwvTjM2aWRTeHRNaDNMNEpsbE1FbU5lM3Z6SEZLbHVuSEhudGVyKzNCOEZpNGw0dE0zalwvQlNyU2srTGIxY3pPN2tDdVhjcnZRNVZyXC9NRiJ9