Thread by @ajitgeorgeSB

Most of my political contributions have been to women (@ewarren, @PramilaJayapal, @AOC, @LindseyBoylan, @SaraGideon, @JCisnerosTX, @AmyMcGrathKY) running for office and I have some thoughts on why.

Women in politics (and elsewhere) a thread.

The first and most obvious reason for why I put my energies in supporting women in politics are the enormous historic discrepancies.

@LindseyBoylan tweeted about the New York's 10th Congressional seat today and how only 1 women has ever held it.

That's just the start.

Here are some excellent stats on state by state: cawp.rutgers.edu/state-by-state

Consistently Red States are among the worst for gender equality in politics.

However, even Blue States aren't hitting the mark and never have.

You can also see historic data if you click on states.

Census data has women at 50.8% percent of the population, but in most cases they hold drastically less of political offices on national, state and local levels.

You can look how women are doing at these various levels here: cawp.rutgers.edu/current-numbers

All of this has been incredibly slow going for women. If you're interested in the milestones (which are simultaneously inspiring for their success and frustrating for their challenges), you can check out this useful timeline: cawp.rutgers.edu/facts/mileston…

Why is this important?

It's important because we are not hearing the opinions of HALF OF OUR POPULATION. They do not hold the offices or have the power to make laws and implement policies that represent their interests, points of view, and needs.

Without women occupying an equal number of seats in politics, we as a nation, are losing out on the voices of half of our population. We are suffering from a dearth of perspectives and ideas and in the wake of that loss we have men assuming to understand and make policy for them.

So that's a good chunk of why I support women in politics. This is also why I am active in support of PoCs and WoC in politics. But that's another thread. Still, take a look at this fact sheet on WoC in politics: cawp.rutgers.edu/fact-sheets-wo…

The other part of the equation for me is anecdotal. These are my lived experiences, so extrapolate as you like.

When I work wit men, both professionally and in areas that are leisure (games for instance), I often find there to be a lot of egos involved to the detriment of goals.

I find working with men to be a battle: Who is smarter, who has the best idea, who is the best leader, etc. Ego-driven interactions.

It's taxing, counter-productive and frustrating. I've not been much better in the past, but I try and be more self-aware now.

Working with women professionally, on the other hand, has been profoundly positive for me. Much of my team both in the U.S. and in India are women. And the difference is so startling.

It feels less a battle to prove who is the smartest person in the room, who is the "leader" and more a collaborative process on how to get the best results. There is less emphasis on credit-taking and more on goal-achieving.

I see the same when men and women in politics speak.

By and large, I find many men in politics to be focused on showing how strong, smart, and great leaders they are while I find women to be focused on goals, working collaboratively with both constituents and colleagues, towards achieving outcomes.

Yes, there are exceptions. Usually conservative women who have been co-opted by patriarchal systems and whose actions are generally in service of prevailing power structures. But getting more women into power will help dismantle these systems.

And that's why I support women in politics: We need to hear from half of our population in equal measure. They have new ideas and those ideas will positively reshape the direction of our nation. They will lead collaboratively and towards tangible goals.