Women in Politics: A Conversation With Mary Hayashi

Women make up a little more than half of the U.S. population yet represent far less than half of all elected representatives in government. For example, women currently make up just 28% of the U.S. House of Representatives — a record number, historically.  

In our democracy, equal representation is the key to ensuring all Americans have an opportunity to make their voices heard in our government. The U.S. cannot claim to be a true democracy until the gender gap in politics is closed.

In her book, “Women in Politics,” Mary Chung Hayashi explores the reasons behind this stubborn gender gap — from cultural and social stereotypes that have persisted for decades (and centuries in some cases), to structural barriers like the need to raise massive amounts of money to run for political office.

Hayashi, herself a former California State Representative, was born in South Korea and arrived in the U.S. at the age of 12. Her career in politics exposes the challenges many women face as they decide whether to seek elective office.

In conversation with Campaign Legal Center's Senior Director of Policy and Strategic Partnerships Catie Kelley, Mary Hayashi discussed the solutions she’s uncovered to achieve gender parity in politics, examples of women leaders who are blazing the trail toward gender parity and what achieving this goal could mean for our nation.