A recent poll in eleven battleground districts, including districts in Kentucky, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, New York, Arizona, and Minnesota, revealed that about half of voters support electing feminist candidates.
In Kentucky’s sixth district, 47 percent of voters supported electing more feminist candidates, while more than 50 percent of voters supported feminist candidates in Pennsylvania, New York, Minnesota, and Arizona. In North Carolina and Virginia, 41 percent of voters would support feminists, more than the number of voters that opposed.
Support for feminist candidates is driven mostly by Democrats and young people. About 75% of Democrats support electing feminists while only about 25% of Republicans do. Among younger women 18-34 years old, 75% support electing feminist while 43 percent of women over the age of 65 would support feminist candidates.
In general, 55% of Black women, 53% of Hispanic women, and 50% of white women support electing feminists. However support for Democrats increases among Democratic women; 78% of Democratic white women, 64% of Democratic Hispanic women, and 58% of Democratic Black women would vote for feminists.
Even among conservatives there is a growing group of younger women who want to see strong female leaders and support feminists on issues like sexual harassment. The #MeToo movement has allowed voters to see that feminism helps women participate in the economy and end harassment.
Voters elected over 110 women to Congress Tuesday, the highest number ever elected, demonstrating that more women are running for office and winning. The women elected include the first Muslim women, first Native American women, and two women in their twenties as well as the former Teacher of the Year, small business owners, former military helicopter pilots, activists, a former CIA officer, and public servants.
Media Resources: NYT 11/6/18; Feminist Newswire 11/7/18
