The year of the woman governor could begin today as two states hold primary elections in which women are front-runners for the governor spot. With 36 governor spots open this year, 14 women are making a bid for the position that has typically trailed far behind US Congress in terms of women elected. “People view women as more moral and ethical,” said Karen O’Connor, director of the Women & Politics Institute at American University. “We really could see a Year of the Woman on the state level.”
Currently, there are five woman governors and that number could more than double this year – women are named as frontrunners in states such as Maryland, Hawaii and Arizona and credible candidates in Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Wisconsin, according to the Christian Science Monitor. In addition, Democratic Attorney General Jennifer Granholm is favored to win in today’s primary election in Michigan while Democratic Insurance Commissioner Kathleen Sebelius is favored to win in Kansas.
Women have also made recent gains in many of the offices that tend to lead to governorships – candidates in several state attorneys general and state treasurer races are women.
