Politics & Government
Councilwoman Works to Bridge Gap
Carrie Downey has long been an advocate for diversity in government, and she supports an organization dedicated to helping women achieve electoral parity.
The numbers tell the story.
Women hold 23 percent of elective state offices and 17 percent of federal seats, far short of their 51 percent share of the population, according to Francine Busby, executive director of Run Women Run.
The group wants to move those percentages up by teaching women, no matter which party they favor, how to run for office.
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Coronado Councilwoman Carrie Downey is one of the San Marcos organization's staunchest supporters. She joined in 2009, one year after Run Women Run was founded. Her motivation was simple.
“I think the political system benefits from having as many views as possible represented in the decision-making process,” said Downey, who is nearing the end of her first term on the council.
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It's not just women. She wants all underrepresented groups – Latinos, African- Americans, gays and lesbians – to be at the table when policy is made, but she also appreciates what women have to offer.
“They tend to be better consensus builders,” said Downey, a parent to daughters. “They tend to be more nuanced in their views.”
These talents are lost to the system primarily because women don't enter the political fray, in many cases because they are afraid of losing. “What they don’t realize is that candidates often lose their first race,” Downey said.
She lost hers. Not because she was a woman, but because people thought she was too young to serve on the council.
“I kept telling people I was old enough to run for President of the United States,” Downey said.
Raising money is also a challenge. "Women raise money for others, but it's hard for them to ask for themselves,” she said.
Run Women Run teaches them how. Along with other election skills, it brings women together to “work with each other and inspire each other,” said Busby, a former Congressional candidate.
Even seasoned politicos have benefited. Downey recently attended a luncheon the group sponsored for current office holders.
“It was inspiring to see how many had changed their school district, city, college district or, in the case of [Representative] Susan Davis, their region,” she said.
Downey got her confidence from her parents. “I was taught to believe that if needs doing, why not me. I can do it.”
She has instilled this can-do attitude in her own daughters. Might they someday run for office? “Only time will tell,” she said.
