According to a Rock the Vote poll, 55 percent of women between the ages of 18 to 29 identify as Democrat, compared to 29 percent who consider themselves Republican.
Can you blame us?
The Republican Party has a notoriously sexist image. This was especially evident during the 2012 elections when Democratic campaigners referred to Republican policies on birth control, abortion and equal pay for equal work as “the war on women.”
According to “Republicans and Women Voters: Huge Challenges, Real Opportunities,” a recent report by GOP groups Crossroads GPS and American Action Network, the perception that Republicans are sexist still persists. The in-depth study, which consisted of eight focus groups and polled 800 registered women voters, found that a majority of women believe that the GOP is “intolerant,” “lacks compassion” and is “stuck in the past.”
Granted, not all Republicans fulfill the sexist stereotype, but Republican leaders are doing very little to dispel this image. There are countless tales of Republican congressmen — looking at you, Todd Akin, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum — publicly denying the existence of rape, criticizing women for being too emotional and distracting to be in combat, and accusing women in the workforce of not having the same work ethic as male counterparts.
With the upcoming midterm elections, the College Republican National Committee attempted to reach out to the GOP’s worst demographic, college women, through a $1 million ad campaign that went horribly, horribly wrong. Inspired by TV shows “Say Yes to the Dress” and “The Bachelor,” the ads appeal to what they believe women care about most: relationships, weddings and reality TV. More women than men every year graduate with a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, law degrees and even doctorates, yet the CRNC believes that women are not intelligent enough to comprehend political platforms nearly as well as men can unless they are compared to relationships and wedding dresses. They label women as vapid, relationship obsessed and incapable of understanding anything political because, according to the CRNC’s implications, politics should be left for the men.
For the GOP to regain its influence and to actually gain women’s votes, it needs to rebrand itself. Now, more than ever, when women are supposed to be a major force in the midterm elections, it is essential for the GOP to change its image. The U.S. is increasingly less tolerant of sexist policies. Female empowerment is trendy now that pop culture icons are propelling the feminist movement. By trivializing women’s intelligence through advertisements that are so ridiculous they almost seem satirical, they are only hurting their image and discouraging women from voting Republican.
Yes, I am a proud, liberal black sheep in a family of die-hard Republicans, and an unhealthily competitive Aries who loves to rub Democrat wins in my equally competitive father’s face every election season. However, I don’t like the fact that I am limited to one candidate in this year’s gubernatorial race. As a self-respecting woman who could never support anyone who assumes that my priorities are boys and dresses, I find it impossible to back a party that has a history of trivializing my professionalism, doubting my intelligence and limiting my rights. I want to be able to seriously consider both sides — their policies, plans and credentials — before entering a voting booth. But, until the GOP radically changes its brand to be more female friendly, republican politicians will continue to struggle to get women’s votes.
