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Single Women Don’t Vote

An estimated 22 million single women did not vote in the last presidential election, making them the largest single block of non-voters among any group in the United States.

                 This is the fact behind, Women’s Voices, Women’s Vote, a non-partisan organization dedicated to getting women to exercising their right to vote.  They found in one of their surveys, that the most common reason for not voting is, “Politicians and elections are controlled by people with money and by big corporations so it doesn’t matter if I vote.”

                 Dr. Linda Wolfson, director of the Housatonic Community College Women’s Center, has a different point of view, saying women should vote because, “Women’s issues are different than men’s, and if [women] want those issues addressed, they have to vote.”

                 Oprah Winfrey recently devoted an entire episode of her show to the issue of women and voting.  According to her research, 40 million women did not vote in the last election.  “That’s the number of people in New York and Texas combined,” Winfrey continued.

                 Millie Horosko, an HCC Alumni and Women’s Center member, listed some of the topics that women should be aware of when deciding to vote, “The issues that are concerning [women] are health care, pay equity, day care for their children and education.”

                 Horosko continues, saying, “If you don’t have women in political power, the issues that affect them will not be addressed and dealt with.  This is why voting for a qualified woman politician is so important.”

                 HCC’s Women Center is devoting this semester to registering students to vote.  It is a cause that all the members of the center have taken up with gusto.  They began this summer by having a half day seminar on learning how to register people to vote from Democracy Works ran by Americo Santiago.

                 Shirley Johansson, a student and a member of the Women’s Center, said that they picked voting as a focus because, “It’s a very important election this year, 22 million women did not vote in the last election.  We’re losing our rights very fast.  If women don’t get out and vote, we’re not going to have any rights and we’re going to go back to the time when there were no rights, no votes, no anything for women.”

                 Several of the members kicked off the drive to get students registered to vote by setting up a table at HCC’s fall orientation.  Now, members of the Women’s Center can be spotted around the cafeteria with stacks of voter registration forms.  They will gladly help students fill them out.  Students don’t even have to pay the cost of postage, the Women’s Center is making sure the forms get where they need to go.

                 “I think large number of women should vote because the candidates will listen to you if they think you’re going to influence the election,” said Adrienne Gurge, an HCC student.

                 Michelle Wheeler, another student and Women’s Center Member said, “There is power in numbers.”

                 A guest on the Winfrey show, Drew Barrymore said, “If women alone voted, they could decide the next president.”

                 Winfrey has also been making a concerted effort to get people out to vote.  “For the past six weeks we’ve been registering our Oprah show audience members.  Hundreds of brand new voters are all signed up and ready to go.  Our goal is to get millions of you to go to the polls on November 2.  You live in a country where we have the blessing to let our voices be heard.”

                 Women have only had the right to vote since 1920.  It was a long, hard battle for a basic freedom.  Horosko said, “The suffragists were arrested, jailed, mistreated, man-handled, and force fed, because they were demonstrating for the right to vote.  They put their lives on the line so that future women could go to the polls and cast their ballot.  So remember this, on Election Day, when you think that you are too busy or don’t have time to vote.”

                 Beth Lazar, an HCC alumni and Women’s Center Member wants to remind people to, “Bring a photo I.D., otherwise they will turn you away at the polls.”

                 According to Project Vote Smart, an application to register to vote must be either hand delivered to the registrar’s office (located in every town hall) or post-marked fourteen days before the election.  Voter registration forms can be found at town or city halls, the DMV, public libraries or even downloaded from this site:  http://www.sots.state.ct.us/ElectionsDivision/elecfrms/ed671.pdf.

                 Voter registration forms are available in the Women’s Center during their office hours.  Or you can find one of their members around the campus with blank forms in hand.

                 If you are not a registered voter, and you wish to register, you must do so by October 19, to vote in the next election. 

Copyright 2003

Women Center Members Meet To Discuss Voting Issues

By Amanda Evans

Date: 10/14/04