Madame President: The Future is Female

By: Bibi Hakim

Historically in 2016, The United States of America had their first Presidential candidate to be nominated for their election, Hillary Clinton. Formerly known as the First Lady, Clinton has had an impressive career as a lawyer and a senator in Congress. In 2024, the United States will see their second woman to run, but the first South Asian and Black-identifying candidate with ties to Canada. Her name is Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris is currently the first woman to be Vice President serving with President Joesph R. Biden. She made waves when giving her speech on inauguration day where she famously said, “I may be the first, but I won’t be the last”. Harris formerly served in the Senate, and as the Attorney General for California. These two women have rich professional experiences with aspirations to serve their country. As the world is evolving, now more than ever we must acknowledge the challenges that women face when running for office, during office and support women who dare put their name on the ballot. 

Historically, women in Canada and the United States have had no role in politics, they were not elected and were considered lucky to serve as secretaries to men who were elected into the role. Clearly in 2024, this has changed. However, research was done by the United Nations—UN Women and found that “As of 1 June 2024, there are 27 countries where 28 women serve as Heads of State and/or Government [1]. Just 18 countries have a woman Head of State, and 15 countries have a woman Head of Government [3]. In 2021, Canada celebrated 100 years of women in federal politics, yet today, women make up less than 33%. In comparison to the world, this data that was compiled by UN Women showed that within elected governments, only 23.3 percent of women held roles in Cabinet as a Minister or lead a policy area. Politics and policy still in 2024 remain as a male dominated field. 

Challenges in the Political Space

Equal Voice is a non-profit organization in Canada that seeks to have more women from all walks of life elected to all levels of office. During the second installment of the Daughters of the Vote program, they found that a woman would need to be asked multiple times before she agreed to run for office, compared to men. The reason behind this? Women often feel they must meet every qualification before considering applying for a role, including running for office. In contrast, men are more likely to put their name forward even if they don’t have all the qualifications.

Those in elected office still face sexism and sexist practices. Examples can be seen in both the United States and Canada. The most basic forms of aggression toward women include the mispronunciation of Kamala Harris’s name, calling elected officials in Canada "too emotional", and criticizing the way they speak or dress. The list goes on. Female-identifying politicians aren’t the only ones subjected to sexism and violence; their families and support staff are also affected.

Politics is not necessarily a safe career for several reasons, especially when it comes to physical safety. Concerns have been raised in Canada, with national articles discussing the threats faced by Members of Parliament and Ministers, especially with the recent assassination attempt of a former President. These are some of the reasons that female and minority candidates consider carefully when deciding whether to run.

The Future of Women in Politics

As a young woman and a minority myself who dreams of running for public office, Vice President Harris’s bid for the Presidency is inspiring. The United States has long claimed to be one of the world’s most progressive countries, often championing the idea of the American Dream. Built largely by immigrants, including Black and Hispanic people, America speaks of equality and opportunity. In my opinion, it’s high time they support a woman from a minority background for the office of President.

Now more than ever, we need to support women candidates like Kamala Harris in the United States and those in Canada who seek elected office. Think tanks and policy enthusiasts talk at length about the changes they wish to see for both nations: better healthcare, a stronger economy, and a robust workforce. As quoted by UN Women, “Women’s equal participation and leadership in political and public life are essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.” These goals, replacing the Millennium Goals, were agreed upon by each Member State of the United Nations to promote a more equitable and just society. Despite ambitious targets, research and data show that women are underrepresented at all levels of decision-making worldwide. We won’t achieve these goals unless women hold elected office at all levels of government. I encourage you to research candidates in the next election, encourage women to run, and support them. Vote for them, because now more than ever, we need women at the tables where decisions are made. The future is female.

To Vice President Kamala Harris: From one ambitious woman to another, I wish you the best and hope to see you become the first elected woman President of the United States—Go Kamala, go!

---

Notes and Citations

[1] UN Women calculation based on information provided by Permanent Missions to the United Nations. Countries with monarchy-based systems are excluded from the count of Heads of State.

[2] UN Women calculations.

[3] UN Women calculation based on information provided by Permanent Missions to the United Nations. Three leaders hold positions of both head of state and head of government. Countries with monarchy-based systems are excluded from the count of Heads of State.

[4] UN Women, Women Political Leaders 2024.