Happy Friday! Welcome to our Media Round-Up. Each week we’re collecting and sharing our favorite gender + politics stories. Here’s what caught our eye this week:

 

U.S. quarters will feature 5 new women. What happened to other plans to change currency?

Janay Kingsberry, The Lily

Over the next couple of years, the American Women Quarters Program and the U.S. Mint will roll out several quarters honoring trailblazing American women and their contributions. The first quarter rollout features prolific poet and storyteller, Maya Angelou. The rest of the quarters featured this year will showcase, “Sally Ride, a physicist and astronaut; Wilma Mankiller, the first female Cherokee Nation chief; Nina Otero-Warren, a suffrage movement leader; and Anna May Wong, Hollywood’s first Chinese American actress.” While some lauded the overdue recognition of these pioneering American women, others asked why other promises of a change in currency have not been met.

Read the full story here.

 

Do term limits help women candidates? New York could be a new testing ground

Barbara Rodriguez, The 19^th*

During her State of the State address, Governor Kathy Hochul said she would support legislation for term limits of statewide positions. Research shows that incumbency has a heavy impact on reelection rates, which partially explains why men largely remain the political majority in state positions while first time women candidates have struggled to break through. Some experts suggest women candidates largely benefit from open seat elections, which enforced term limits would produce. Other experts say research shows that term limits don’t have any effect on women’s representation in politics and men would continue to be the majority.

Read the full story here.

 

A paid holiday in March? It’d be Women’s Suffrage Day if Washington state lawmakers vote yea

Tom Banse, NW News Network

On March 22, 1920, the 19^th Amendment was ratified, giving women the right to vote; and now, that day may become a federal holiday. During the opening day of Washington state’s 2022 legislative session, a bipartisan group of state representatives presented a proposal for the potential legal holiday. The proposal was initially introduced last year, but did not come to a vote. If the proposal passes approval, Women’s Suffrage Day will be the twelfth paid state holiday and will take effect next year.

Read the full story here.

 

What does the female City Council majority want to do for women?

Annie McDonough, City & State New York

For the first time, New York City has a female majority on the city council. In addition to this, the City Council speaker is Adrienne Adams, meaning the council is now led by women too. With this new female majority, many think the city council can now follow through on past legislation focused on women. Some focus areas for the female majority city council will include: improving maternal mortality rates, securing a women and children’s health center in the Bronx, universal pre-K, and many other issues affecting women.

Read the full story here.