National Women's Political Caucus of Washington

News


“Field, Part 1” with Nichole Webber

Join us on Saturday, May 16, and learn from the best! 

Nichole Webber is an Executive Project Coordinator for the City of Everett, and she has managed successful campaigns for State Senator Michael Baumgartner an Everett Council Race and Everett's current Mayor, Cassie Franklin. 

This week’s training will cover field training 101. We will focus on your message, volunteers, and what campaigning/field work might look like during this pandemic. 

CLICK HERE to learn more and to sign up!


Delivering your Message, with Lorraine Howell

Voters want to know why you are running for office and what you will do if elected. Answering these questions take thought, preparation, and practice. In this session you’ll learn how to organize your ideas, transform them into key messages, and deliver those messages to various constituencies throughout your campaign. It’s all about persuasive communication!

Read more

Campaign Nuts and Bolts

Please join us on Saturday, May 2  at 8:00 a.m. for the Virtual Training “Campaign Nuts and Bolts,” led by Christina Pedersen and Breann Pugnetti

This is the first event in our Virtual Candidate Training series.  

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Ready Set Run!

Have you heard about our Virtual Candidate Training series? Starting on May 2, NWPC-WA will present one virtual class every Saturday morning through June 30.

Read more

Persistence in the Face of a Global Pandemic

 

The stress brought on by COVID-19 continues to shape the way we look at politics—but the National Women's Political Caucus of Washington persists in our dedication to increasing womxn's participation in the political process and fueling the pipeline of women to elected office. I can’t stress enough the need for all of us to stay home, stay healthy but also to stay engaged. Here’s why.


Several state legislatures, including Ohio, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma, have been using this crisis as cover to deem abortion a non-essential procedure. Anti-choice politicians often use moments of distress to advance their nefarious agenda, but this attack is unlike anything we’ve seen before.

Women Working

We know that womxn are disproportionately impacted by the economic fallout of COVID-19 as we struggle for wage equity and make up a much higher percentage of “essential” workers—75 percent of healthcare workers and a higher percentage of service workers. And as some womxn work from home due to the pandemic, studies indicate that an unequal burden of childcare, homeschool responsibilities and domestic labor is falling on womxn.  Sadly, this crisis is only amplifying the inequities we long knew existed. There are critical safety issues at stake, with domestic violence and sexual assault rates skyrocketing as survivors shelter-in-place with their abusers. The need for women in positions of leadership and authority has never been clearer.


The only way to we can help close the gender pay gap, increase access and availability of childcare, defend domestic violence victims and protect our reproductive freedom is by electing more womxn to public office.

 

 Emily Wicks

Emily Wicks-Day 
President, NWPC-WA


Votes for WomenCandidate Trainings Start in May!

Every year, NWPC-WA gathers womxn leaders from all over Washington to learn from local campaign experts about running for office. This of course is not a normal year—but our mission remains the same.

Our 2020 Virtual Campaign and Candidate Trainings will be held at 8 a.m. every Saturday morning during the months of May and June. Registration provides participants with 10 live and recorded trainings covering everything from field to messaging, to social media and fundraising. Our trainings are a great resource for womxn candidates, campaign managers and volunteers—providing insight from, and connections with, the most prominent political consultants across our state. 

Thank you to our sponsors

You Should RunWant to Help Fuel the Pipeline?

We need you to help us identify promising future leaders! We know there are fabulous womxn in your life that you hope will run for office or work behind the scenes to make change—they’re running your favorite local businesses, volunteering for your child’s PTA and working alongside you making a difference in your community. We hope you’ll consider nominating one or two of these amazing leaders to attend our trainings.

Simply fill out THIS FORM

Be sure to include the best way to contact them, and we will get in touch to let them know they have a cheerleader in their corner! 


Donate

Want to go a Step Further?  Donate!

More womxn are being elected and we continue to move closer to parity in representation at all levels of government. In 2019 we witnessed many successes for womxn across our state and across the country. These accomplishments wouldn’t have been possible without your support and encouragement during our time in Washington state and we want to keep the momentum going – even through these hard times!



Get Endorsed

Are you a pro-choice womxn running for public office—from local school board to Congress? If so, NWPC-WA wants to help you succeed by endorsing you and supporting your campaign! To qualify for the Caucus’ endorsement, candidates must identify as a woman or non-binary. You must demonstrate support for equal rights, reproductive freedom and social equity and justice for womxn. Additionally, you must have a competitive campaign plan.

Our endorsement process has begun and our questionnaires are live.  Find them HERE.

For more information about our endorsement process, please email [email protected] and be sure to include the position you are running for and the jurisdiction it represents.


 


March Onward and Upward

The last few weeks have no doubt felt like a heartbreaking gut punch for many of us.

I keep asking myself how NWPC-WA should speak to its members and others during this time of uncertainty, and strange, quiet unrest. I’ve been doing a lot of reading, a lot of analyzing, and a lot of questioning. I’ve been doing a lot of planning and a lot of Parks and Recreation watching (Leslie Knope is a magic cure for the blues, as are Girl Scout cookies.)

Pinky Promise

But the most important thing I’ve done over the last two weeks is think about successes—and how we are playing a long, sometimes hard, game.

In 2015, a historic election in Yakima brought the first female majority in the City Council’s history. In 2016, we helped usher in a diverse, majority-women city council in Seattle. In 2017, we celebrated that our two endorsed candidates for Everett Mayor made it through the primary, leading to the first woman mayor in the City’s 124-year history. That year we also helped make history with the largest political march ever recorded. In 2019, our three endorsed candidates for Snohomish County Council received the highest number of democratic primary votes among seven candidates, and slowly but surely, we are shifting the balance of their historically majority-male council. We also supported Washington’s first woman and first openly gay Speaker of the State House. We are making huge, important progress.

These elected womxn have brought—and are bringing—policies and changes that reflect the needs, concerns and priorities of those who have been left out of decision-making for far too long.

Every day and every year we push. We move the needle. We make gains. We change how the world looks, who is at the table, and who is in charge.

The President of the United States was unfortunately not Victoria Woodhull in 1872, or Shirley Chisholm or Patsy Mink in 1972. It was not Hillary Clinton in 2008 or 2016, and it will not be Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gillibrand, Amy Klobuchar, Marianne Williamson or even Tulsi Gabbard in 2020.

But this we know—the next President of the United States is being elected, by you, right now – to city council, to county council, to school board, to state house and senate, and to Congress. Your work, your passion, your support – it’s not for nothing. It’s everything. And it is making a difference so that one day soon, the best woman will indeed win.

 Emily Wicks

Emily Wicks-Day 
President, NWPC-WA


Galentine

Continue to Push for Womxn: Candidate Trainings

NWPC-WA’s popular womxn candidate and campaign trainings start this month. DONATE HERE to sponsor a future candidate or campaign manager or advertise your business. 

Details and registration information can be found by visiting our events page at www.nwpcwa.org/events, or contact NWPC-WA Training and Education Chair, Christina Pedersen at [email protected]

April 25 
May 2 - Women of Color Candidate Training only
May 30

Note: We are closely monitoring public health recommendations in Washington and will let all participants know of changes to location or online status.


Get Endorsed

Continue to Push for Women: Endorsements

Are you a pro-choice woman running for public office – anything from local school board to Congress? If so, NWPC-WA wants to help you succeed by endorsing you and supporting your campaign! To qualify for the Caucus’s endorsement, candidates must identify as women or non-binary. They must demonstrate support for equal rights, reproductive freedom, and social equity and justice for womxn. In addition, they must have a competitive campaign plan.

Our early endorsement process has begun, and our questionnaires are live and are available HERE.

For more information about our endorsement process, please email [email protected] and be sure to include the position you are running for and the jurisdiction  it represents.


Celebrate your Galentine

When I first started high school, I wasn’t the passionate, political feminist I am today. Then I met Christina. As much as she might beg to differ, it was her display of the kindness and acceptance of others, the thoughtful way she presented opinions and insights, and the unique ability she had to see multiple sides of important issues that made me the person I am today. 

Over the years, we’ve fought hard to pass bonds and levies for kids in our hometown, raised money for student scholarships and teacher grants, facilitated the endorsement of amazing womxn candidates, and coordinated detailed trainings designed to fuel the pipeline of womxn running for public office. 

Emily and Tina

Christina and I have become an unstoppable force in our community. She is my friend. She is my mentor. She is my confidant. She is my Galentine!

 Emily Wicks

Emily Wicks-Day 
President, NWPC-WA


Tell us about your Galentine!

Galentine's Day is TODAY, February 13 

We want to hear about and celebrate YOUR Galentines! In celebration of Galentine’s Day on February 13, we’re asking you to DONATE $50 to honor a Womxn in your life!

Simply DONATE. Then submit a photo of you and your Galentine, and a note about on why you chose to honor them.  We’ll post your Galentine’s Day message on our social media accounts (like the one submitted from Breann below) and we'll send your Galentine a personal email.


Galentine

 

Your Galentine’s Day donation helps NWPC-WA facilitate and provide scholarships at our day-long candidate trainings for womxn.

DONATE today and recognize an amazing womxn in your life!


National Women's March

Seattle Womxn's March

Sunday, March 8, 2020 | 1 p.m.

NWPC-WA is helping to mobilize Washington womxn to participate in the Seattle sister march. The 2020 Womxn’s March marks three years of resistance and three years of building power together.

No matter what issue we are fighting for, no matter how we fight for justice, womxn are always stronger when we fight united. The Womxn’s March has knitted together a powerful movement of people who share a common belief that freedom is for everyone, without exception. In 2020, #WomxnRise and from our doorsteps to the White House, we’re going all in to fight for our future. 

Interested in joining NWPC-WA at the March? Contact our President, Emily Wicks at [email protected] and learn more HERE.


Votes for Women

 Candidate Trainings for Women are Here

NWPC-WA’s popular trainings start in March, and thanks to a grant from our national organization, they include two trainings exclusively for women of color. 

There are a ton of ways to be involved and make a difference. DONATE HERE to sponsor a future candidate or campaign manager or advertise your consulting business. 

Details and registration information can be found by visiting our events page at www.nwpcwa.org/events, or contact NWPC-WA Training and Education Chair, Christina Pedersen at [email protected] and save the dates: 

  • March 28 – Women of Color Candidate Training only*
  • April 25 
  • May 2 - Women of Color Candidate Training only*
  • May 30
 
Get Endorsed

Get Endorsed

Are you a pro-choice woman running for public office – anything from local school board to Congress? If so, NWPC-WA can help you succeed by endorsing you. To qualify for the Caucus’ endorsement, candidates must identify as women or non-binary. They must demonstrate support for equal rights, reproductive freedom, and social equity and justice for women. In addition, they must have a competitive campaign plan.

Our early endorsement process begins each year in April and regular endorsements take place in June, but our questionnaires are live and are available HERE.

For more information about our endorsement process, please email [email protected] and be sure to include the position you are running for and the municipality it represents.


Looking Ahead to 2020

 

Recruiting, training, and electing women since 1971

Lady Liberty

Walk the Marble

Sunday, January 12, 2020 1:00 p.m.

RSVP HERE


National Women's March

Saturday, January 18, 2020 11:00 a.m. 

RSVP HERE


Women Candidate Training

March 28*
April 25
May 2*
May 30

*WA women of color only


Women's Suffrage Events

Votes for Women:  100 Years and Counting

Women's Suffrage Centennial

LEARN MORE

 


We Have Work to Do

Emily WicksThis is an organization like no other and I am honored to serve as its leader during such a momentous year – the centennial celebration of women’s suffrage – 100 years of a woman’s right to vote. 

Wow. That actually really sucks. That means that 143 of the years in which the United States has had independence, women didn’t have a damn say. 

During that time, laws, decided only by men, made it so women ceased to legally exist once married to a man. Laws, decided only by men, forced women out of government jobs, and denied them access to birth control. Laws, decided only by men, prevented women from accessing higher education, any of the professions and, as written by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, 

 “nearly all the profitable employments”. 

These laws, decided by men (usually white) especially excluded and created additional barriers for women of color.

At this week’s Golden Globes, Michelle Williams offered a challenge to all of us, 

“So, women 18 to 118, when it is time to vote please do so in your self-interest. It's what men have been doing for years, which is why the world looks so much like them. But don't forget we are the largest voting body in this country. Let's make it look more like us.”

It truly is essential that we turn out to vote, but voting isn’t enough.  Women’s rights and Suffrage are not synonymous terms. It’s when women vote, and when women get elected that we are able to slowly peel back a system that worked against women, and thus, against a more just and thriving society for all. 

Equal opportunity for women to advance is still at risk, but the year 2020 could mark the beginning of a major shift. Womxn need to vote, womxn need to get elected, and womxn need to get involved and stay involved.

We have work to do. Join the cause – and the Caucus. 

 Emily Wicks

Emily Wicks-Day 
President, NWPC-WA


Walk the Marble Legislative Preview Event

Sunday, January 12 | 1 p.m. 

Join NWPC-WA members as we prepare to walk the marble in 2020! Hear from Washington State Representative and Deputy Speaker Pro Tempore Tina Orwall, learn about 2020 legislation that affects women and families, network with movers and shakers from across Washington state, and learn how you can make a difference!

RSVP Here


National Women's March

National Women's March, Seattle | Bellingham

Saturday, January 18, 2020 | 11 a.m. 

NWPC-WA is helping to mobilize Washington women to participate sister marches in their communities. The 2020 Women’s March marks three years of resistance and three years of building power together.

No matter what issue we are fighting for, no matter how we fight for justice, women are always stronger when we fight united. The Women’s March has knitted together a powerful movement of people who share a common belief that freedom is for everyone, without exception. In 2020, #WomenRise and from our doorsteps to the White House, we’re going all in to fight for our future. 

Interested in joining NWPC-WA at the March? Contact our President, Emily Wicks at [email protected] and learn more HERE.


 Candidate Trainings for Women are Back

NWPC-WA’s popular trainings start in March, and thanks to a grant from our national organization, they include two trainings exclusively for women of color. 

There are a ton of ways to be involved and make a difference. Sponsor a future candidate or campaign manager, serve on the planning committee, or advertise your consulting business to women looking for someone to help them win in 2020. Contact NWPC-WA Training and Education Chair, Christina Pedersen at [email protected] and save the dates: 

  • March 28 – Women of Color Candidate Training only*
  • April 25 
  • May 2 - Women of Color Candidate Training only*
  • May 30
 

Your Membership Matters

Members are the reason this all-volunteer run organization is able to do the important work of getting women elected! Join NWPC-WA today and you’ll receive a free “Run like a Girl” t-shirt! 

NWPC-WA Members are also able to serve as part of the candidate endorsement process and help guide the future of the Caucus.  

Join HERE!


Endorsements Propel our Women Candidates

Speaking of endorsements. We’re gearing up for a big election year. From the US President to Congress, to state-wide races and the state legislature, women are needed on every level.

Whether you’re considering a run, considering joining a campaign, or just want to be instrumental in the effort to reach parity in government representation, NWPC-WA endorsements are where it starts.

Learn More.


Women’s Suffrage and the Washington State Historical Society

Women's SuffrageThe Washington State Historical Society and the Washington Women's History Consortium are working together to support events and programs related to the Women's Suffrage Centennial. Visit their site to learn about the projects they are supporting and their upcoming events, and access free centennial exhibits and curriculum. 

Mark your calendar for the Votes for Women Centennial Festival at the State Capitol on August 22, 2020 and visit Suffrage100WA.com to find out how you can mark this important milestone in American history and celebrate women in your community.


Caucus Executive Committee

President: Emily Wicks
Vice President, Democrat: Sarah Bosley
Vice President, Republican: Nancy Slotnick
Endorsements: Gail Bergeron & Catherine Minch
Secretary: Jen Levallee
Treasurer: Katherine Bobman

Visit our Leadership page for a full list of Committee Chairs and Local Endorsement Action Committee chairs.  

   

 


Where the Democratic Women Running for President Stand on Reproductive Justice

Women Presidential Candidates

We here at NWPC-WA are working hard to recruit, train and elect more women to all levels of office here in Washington State. But that doesn’t mean we’re not paying attention to what’s happening in the other Washington! We’ve been keeping a close eye on the race for the democratic presidential nomination. While we love to see a race filled with so many incredible, strong women candidates, we wanted to know exactly how each of these women see the abortion issue. So we did some research. Here’s what we found out.

Read more

Join NWPC-WA Endorsements Events and Trainings