Dems Fear for Their Women

High-profile female candidates in danger around the country
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 12, 2010 8:55 AM CDT
Dems Fear for Their Women
Barbara Boxer, Ann Kirkpatrick and Mary Jo Kilroy are all considered in danger.   (Associated Press)

As Republicans celebrate the rise of “Mama Grizzly” with record numbers of female candidates, Democrats are afraid that wave could dash a host of their own women on the rocks. Nearly a quarter of the 56 female Democrats in the House are considered vulnerable, according to Politico, including the once-heralded likes of Ann Kirkpatrick and Betsy Markey. And regardless of how the Mama Grizzlies fare, congress is likely to lose female legislators overall.

“This should trouble anyone who believes that a Congress should be truly representative of the people it serves,” says Judy Chu, a Democratic rep from California. Since the original “Year of the Woman” in 1992, Democratic women have made their presence felt on the Hill in big ways—like passing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act—and small ones, like installing breast-feeding rooms for congressional moms.

For one less-than-PC take on the problem of the female Democrat, click here.
(More women stories.)

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