One hundred women from historically Black colleges and universities took part in the Elect Her summit over the weekend. Led by Running Start and Xceleader, the Elect Her program empowers young women to pursue public office and positions within their school's student government. Throughout the two-day program, two Elect Her alums, Xceleader Co-Founder Jade Agudosi and legislative analyst Allyson Carpenter, hopped in to offer their insights. Also, Congresswomen Frederica Wilson and Alma Adams stepped in to offer their insights regarding their time in public office.
The need for Black women to be involved in politics is greater now than ever. Despite 16 million Black women living in the United States, only 67% of Black women are registered to vote. Furthermore, Black women make up nearly 8% of the population, but they make up less than 5% of the U.S. House of Representatives and 1% of the U.S. Senate. The lack of of Black women in collegiate leadership positions is also eye-catching. In 2018, the American Student Government Association found that only 7% of student body presidents were Black women.
In an effort to combat these issues, Running Start and Xceleader have worked with 20,000 young women over the last decade. Moving forward, Xceleader's Xceleaher initiative will look to work exclusively with young women looking to make a change.
With election day eight days away, a record number of Black women are running for Congress. Remember to vote by November 3.
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