Women in Politics

Nominations closed yesterday and the line up stands at 14 well-intended residents seeking 8 council seats.  Most surprisingly here is that of these 14 individuals, 5 are women.  I find this striking, especially when my by-election win in December pushed council up to 50% female representation for the first time ever in Thompson!

For the most part, I find these numbers a little sad.  I grew up in the era of third-wave feminism and never had to fight the tough battles for equality or against the rigid public/private sphere dichotomy.  At the same time I believe that the struggle for balance is ongoing and when you look at public office, we are falling incredibly short.

Municipal politicians in Canada are about 22% women. The United Nations defines 30 per cent female representation as the minimum required in a government body before policy begins to adequately reflect women's concerns.  Not only that, but women also tend to take a different approach to the process and content of policy.  Think more deliberation and consensus-building and less adversarial.  Honestly, based on my experience growing up in Thompson, the women here are our community leaders already.  My own mother led multiple organizations when I was young, from Can Skate to the Women's Hospital Auxillary.  There's just something about being in the fish bowl of public office that makes us shy away! 

I attended a workshop that focused on encouraging more women to run for municipal politics and providing them the tools to do so.  It was a very valuable experience that highlighted many important considerations for running a successful campaign.  Perhaps the tools need to reach further.  Perhaps we need different tools.  Plan Canada's Because I Am a Girl Campaign targets investment in girls as the key to eliminating poverty and creating a better world, simply by giving girls the tools to succeed in an increasingly globalized world.  Interesting...  Perhaps the key to bringing balance to the democratic deficit or combating voter apathy is to get more women involved in politics.

Of course, the residents of Thompson may already know that and the 5 women on the ballot could make a majority on council.  Not that I think gender is the only valid qualification when voters are sizing up the candidate list.  I just hope that achieving balance is considered and that Thompson City Council will remain one of the most progressive and forward-looking municipalities in Canada.


To view my interview with CTV News Winnipeg go to this link:
http://watch.ctv.ca/news/clip349640#clip349640


To view Plan Canada's Because I Am a Girl Summary, go to this link:
http://plancanada.ca/Document.Doc?id=122