Hey, Democrats: Thank the Women

[Hope And Change]

November 5, 2008, 8:24 pm

Hey, Democrats: Thank the Women

By Sarah Wheaton

On the day after the vote, everyone seems to want to claim credit for President-elect Barack Obama. But as Abigail Adams once wrote (though in a different context), the people from Emily’s List “desire you would remember the ladies.”

Emily’s List, which supports the candidacies of Democratic women, said it was women who put Mr. Obama over the top. According to exit polls, men virtually split their votes, with approximately 48 percent choosing Senator John McCain and 49 going with Mr. Obama. But 56 percent of women chose Mr. Obama.

Similar gender gaps helped female Democratic candidates win in down-ballot races. In New Hampshire, former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen’s margin of victory over Senator John Sununu was 31 percent, though men’s allegiances were virtually split in that race.

In North Carolina, the group spent $200,000 trying to get younger voters to look beyond Mr. Obama to other candidates on the ballot. Democrat Kay Hagan thwarted Senator Elizabeth Dole’s hopes for re-election, and Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue is now set to become “the first pro-choice woman governor in the South since Ann Richards,” said Ellen Malcolm, the founder of Emily’s List, in a conference call with supporters.

Democratic women had a net gain of six in the House. The one Republican pick-up among women, Lynn Jenkins, came at the expense of a Democratic woman, Nancy Boyda of Kansas.

Lisa Ziriax, a spokeswoman for the National Federation of Republican Women, said that the nomination of Gov. Sarah Palin for vice president was a “testament” to the party’s commitment to promoting women.


http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/05/hey-democrats-thank-the-women/

[Colobo]

1. Thanks!