Ladies, you simply MUST get out and vote in November. But first, you must make sure that there are no sneaky voter ID laws in your state that would block you from doing so. The National Conference of State Legislatures has put together this handy map, so check it out for more info on your state’s voter ID laws. Then go to their website to see what you need to do to make sure your voice is heard.
Women, especially younger women and single women, turned out in incredible numbers in the last election and overwhelmingly supported Obama. Unmarried women preferred Obama to McCain by 70 to 29, according to Women’s Voices Women Vote, a nonpartisan organization (married women preferred him, too, but by a slimmer margin).
About 10 million more women than men voted in 2008, according to Emily’s List. And, according to the Census Bureau, almost 55 percent of women ages 18-22 voted, which is 8 points higher than men in the same age group.
That impressive show of force needs to happen again.
Obama may not have people in hysterics with his promises of hope this time around, but there’s definitely more at stake for the country in general–and specifically for women–in this upcoming election. It’s in the best interest of American women as much as American men to stay on track towards economic recovery and avoid going back to the party that got us into this financial mess. But, it’s just as urgent to make sure that women keep the rights to make decisions about our own bodies and when (or if) we want to be mothers—rights, by the way, that have already been fought for and supposedly won.
Writing about the DNC (or what CNN’s resident sexist douchebag Erick Erickson called the “Vagina Monologues” because of its strong and vocal female presence), Amanda Marcotte stated on Slate’s XX Factor blog:
The mission of the Democrats this week isn’t so much to persuade female voters to come over to their camp—they have the majority of the female vote sewn up—but instead to convince young women and single women to turn out in the same numbers that they did in 2008.
If everyone who actually supported Obama voted, the election would be a cakewalk. But, unfortunately, a lot of people who would be much better off with Obama in a second term are disenfranchised by voter ID laws or just straight-up apathetic about the voting process.
I can’t overstate just how crucial it is that everyone who gives a shit about women’s rights gets to the polls this year. Just picture me (or someone you might listen to) standing on a chair and screaming “VOTE, VOTE GODDAMNIT!” at you, getting a little red in the face, perhaps some flecks of spittle landing on your cheek, because if I were there with you in person that’s what I would do.
Map reproduced with permission from the National Conference of State Legislatures. Photos via historyoffeminism.com and The Guardian.
