The First Female Presidential Candidate
In 1872, history was made when suffragist, Victoria Woodhull, ran for President of the United States. She was a candidate for the Equal Rights Party, and her opponent, Frederick Douglass. Woodhull was a leader in the women’s suffrage movement, a magnetic healer, and an advocate for labor reforms. As well as, what she called “free love”, meaning the freedom to marry, divorce, and have children without interference from the government. Despite her efforts, Woodhull’s candidacy was not taken seriously, and she did not win. However, she paved the way for women after her to run for president.
Belva Ann Lockwood was one of the first women to practice law. In 1879, after graduating from law school, she petitioned Congress to practice before the Supreme Court and won. She was the first female attorney to do so. Not long after, in 1884, Lockwood followed in the footsteps of Woodhull and ran for president. Her running mate was also a woman— Marrietta Stow.
Marrietta Stow was an American women’s rights, suffragist, and she was the first woman to run for vice president of the United States. Just as Woodhull, both Lockwood, and Stow were a part of the Equal Rights Party, and their main focus was women’s suffrage.
In 1964, Margaret Chase Smith, the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress and the— at the time— longest female Senator, announced
her candidacy in the Republican party. Thus, making her another first, as the first woman to run for the presidency as a major party candidate.
Almost 10 years later, in 1972, Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman to be elected into Congress, announced her presidential bid as a Democrat. Thus, making her the first African-American to run for POTUS as a major-party candidate, and the first woman to run for the Democratic party. During her campaign, Chisolm said, “I have certainly met much more discrimination in terms of being a woman than being black, in the field of politics.”
Continuous Strides
In 2016, Hillary Clinton became the first woman to be nominated for president by a major party after winning a majority of delegates in the Democratic Party. She also became the first woman to win the popular vote. However, Clinton did not win the election. Nevertheless, she made history.
Furthermore, 2 other women have won the vice presidential nominations in previous years. Geraldine Ferraro for the Democratic Party in 1984, and Sarah Palin for the Republican Party in 2008.
Making History
Flash forward almost 50 years, and America is making history. In the 2020 election there were 6 women running for president.
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These were the 6 women running for president in the 2020 election, and they have made some big impacts politically. Before this year, only 5 women made it to the debate stage: Shirley Chisholm (Democrat; 1972), Carol Moseley Braun (Democrat; 2004), Hillary Clinton (Democrat; 2008/2016), Michele Bachmann (Republican; 2012), and Carly Fiorina (Republican; 2016). Furthermore, there has never been more than one woman on the debate stage at a time, and there had never been more than two women running in a single party at one time. During the Democratic primary debate, there were at least three women on the debate stage.
Will America Ever Have a Female President of the United States?
It was a close run in 2016 with Clinton, but some Americans are hopeful that this will be the year America has its first female president. However, as of January 2020, only 2 of the 6 female candidates remain— Warren and Klobuchar.
According to Politico.com, “Sexism costs every woman candidate votes, but Hillary Clinton did not lose the presidency in 2016 because she is a woman. She was the wrong candidate for the time. Still, Clinton has certainly succeeded in making it easier for other women to run for office. Perhaps, the seeds of change may have been planted in Clinton’s defeat.”
What do you think— will Madam President be moving into the White House this fall? Would our country benefit from a woman running it? Why or why not? Comment your thoughts down below.
Thanks for reading!
Happy Women’s History Month, and be sure to vote when the time comes!
