Beyond the Ballot: The Rise and Importance of Women in Power
By News Editor Anna-Katharina Priesterath
Former president and convicted felon Donald Trump won the presidential election in the United States less than a week ago. His victory against Vice-President Kamala Harris, who formerly worked in the positions of San Francisco District Attorney, the Attorney General in California, and a U.S. Senator. Conducted surveys and interviews with American voters showed that although Harris’s record seemed great, many did not trust a woman to take on the role of being the president. Several examples in other countries, such as Angela Merkel and Jacinda Ardern, have shown women succeed in high political positions. And as of right now, the United States needs a woman in power more than ever.
#GirlBoss, #HerStory, and #GirlPower! Beyonce spoke at Harris’ rally in Houston, Taylor Swift made a public statement endorsing Harris, and Harris herself made several unexpected podcast and TV appearances, calling to voters all over the USA. All eyes were on the second female presidential candidate in the history of the United States, who for many symbolised freedom. In 2015, Hillary Clinton was the first woman to run for the position of President of the U.S. During her campaign, voices all over the country grew in hope for a better country. For many, and especially for women not belonging to the upper class, Trump’s political agenda turned the American Dream into a nightmare. Women in leadership positions have become more present recently. In several countries, women have been more empowered, and yet, during the recent presidential election in the United States, millions of disappointed voters had to witness another white man win. The whole world was watching in anticipation, many hoping for the announcement of the first female president of the United States of America. While reminiscing about what could have been is not productive, I want to emphasise the importance of women in leadership. There is more to it than hashtags online and putting the ‘equality achieved’ stamp on this matter. Why do we need women in leadership roles, especially in politics? Trump being re-elected into office for a second term is setting back the feminist movements and here is why.
In order to understand the impact a female president could have on the United States, analysing and understanding the impacts of female leadership in other countries is crucial. This year, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo was elected as the first female president of Mexico. Her focus lies on transitioning to clean energies, empowering women in public spaces, and protecting the LGBTQ community. In 2021, Barbados transitioned into a republic and announced its first-ever president: Sandra Mason. She is actively helping to reform the country and helps Barbados to achieve a higher visibility worldwide. Angela Merkel served as Germany's first female Chancellor for 4 terms, a total of 16 years. During her time as chancellor of Germany and one of the most powerful women worldwide, her immigration policy allowed millions of migrants who were fleeing war in Syria and Afghanistan to enter Germany and seek safety. Jacinda Ardern served as prime minister in New Zealand during the COVID-19 pandemic. Notably, New Zealand was one of the countries handling the outbreak of the virus the best and is one of the countries with the fewest Covid-related deaths worldwide. Women have been taking on leadership positions worldwide, yet some stereotypes remain.
‘Women are too emotional to rule countries.’ According to the BBC, during Sanna Marin’s tenure as prime minister, Finland has been the happiest country worldwide for the past seven years. Finland’s beautiful landscapes are not the only reason for such a recurring result. In fact, despite offering breathtaking landscapes in several states, such as Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Montana, the U.S. did not even earn a spot in the top 20 spots of happiest countries worldwide. Surveys and studies show that Finnish people not only feel more trusting but also freer in their country, which consequently leads back to their government. Finnish people are satisfied with their educational and judiciary system. Additionally, the country emphasises sustainability. The public sector works for the people and not against them. The leading Finnish politicians were seemingly doing a great job. The members of Marin's cabinet Sanna Marin, Li Andersson, Maria Ohisalo, Anna-Maja Henriksson, and Katri Kulmuni had one thing in common: they were all women.
‘Women are too nice for leadership positions, and they lack charisma.’ Researcher Cindy Adams found that women demonstrate higher effectiveness and creative competency in leadership positions. She found that by providing more feedback and enforcing less of a hierarchy as a lot of male leaders do, female leaders are more successful. Respecting the people they are working with, but also admitting to their own mistakes results in better relationships and work results. Standing on the receiving end of sexism shapes women’s experiences, opportunities and values from a young age on. The reason that less women are aiming to be in leadership positions is not because they are less qualified but because they have been programmed by society to believe they are not worthy of being in leadership positions. Russian President Vladimir Putin, during an interview held on Nov 7th, declared that, following his attempted assassination earlier this year, Trump had reacted ‘courageously, like a man’ (source: BBC). Courage, just like any other quality, is gender-neutral and using it in this context only supports restricting gender binaries and stereotypes.
Greed is killing millions. History is constantly repeating itself. The current political state of the world is in a crisis. We are currently watching genocides in Afghanistan, China, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lebanon, Myanmar, Nigeria, North Korea, Palestine, Syria, and in the Ukraine. Other countries like North Korea and Sudan are undergoing genocide investigation or received genocide warnings by Genocide Watch. The climate crisis, the housing crisis, and the economic crisis are urgent matters affecting people worldwide. The most powerful people in the world right now, including all the male presidents, dictators, and other leading political figures involved in the conflicts of the countries listed earlier, have wasted time by not resolving conflicts and working together to fight crises but attacking each other. If women are too nice, it might explain why all wars have been started by men.
‘Women do not understand politics.’ Being a woman is political. One of the main focuses of Harris and Trump campaigns has been women’s reproductive rights. For centuries, men have decided over women’s bodies and their reproductive rights. After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, abortion pill suppliers were getting thousands of orders. Within 12 hours after this year’s election results were clear, over 5000 requests for abortion pills were submitted (source: The Guardian). The shelves in stores that were stocked with emergency contraception were empty. More women than ever called doctors to discuss and plan their sterilisation. The demand for emergency contraception rose by 300 percent (source: DAZED). Women are scared. Reproductive rights ultimately concern the and banning abortions will not stop women from getting them but from getting them safely in professional and secure environments. Women are already risking their lives now by travelling to different states for the procedures. Harris emphasised again and again how important it is for women to have their rights over their bodies. Women do understand politics very well. It is their bodies, their lives, their futures that are on the line, which is why women have to be the ones making the decisions.
Epistemic violence, defined as excluding and ignoring the experiences and perspectives of marginalised voices that are affected the most by sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic and discriminatory policies rooted in capitalistic and patriarchal ideals. Seeing Trump, the man who openly sexualized women, including his own daughter, and minors, who was accused of sexually assaulting many women, who is being sentenced in a few weeks for his conviction of 34 felony counts, win against Harris is shameful. Over 25 women have come out and accusing Trump of crimes of forceful kissing and touching without consent, groping, and raping them. The world is in a crisis state. The number of conflicts, wars, genocides and catastrophes is increasing and now, one of the most powerful people worldwide, the person representing and making decisions that will not only impact 334.9 million Americans, but also the rest of the world is someone unpredictable who not only disregards women’s but also human rights. The United States, just like many other countries, needs female leadership in order to protect, empower and liberate women.
