This year, 3,381 women are running for their states legislatures; this is one thousand more than 20 years ago. On the national scene, 256 women appear as candidate for Senate and House. Among them are 36 (double Chai) Jewish women, 13 of them challenging the current holders of the seats. 12 are running for House and one for Senate.
But, who are they?:
Liz Watson (D) – Indiana
Liz Watson is a 5th-generation Hoosier and a labor and employment attorney who has spent her entire career fighting for working families. Liz has endorsements from over 30 labor unions, a dozen progressive groups, and two former representatives of the 9th district. Liz believes in affordable health care, good-quality education for our kids, good-paying jobs, equal rights, and a clean environment.
Lauren Baer (D) – Florida
Lauren Baer was raised in Florida’s 18th Congressional District and calls Palm Beach Gardens home. An attorney and foreign policy expert, Lauren served as an official in the Obama Administration from 2011-2017, acting as a senior advisor to Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, and to U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power…
Dana Balter (D) – New York
Dana Balter is a Democratic candidate for New York’s 24th Congressional District in the U.S. House. Balter is running in the general election on November 6, 2018, after advancing from the primary on June 26, 2018. On June 26, 2018, she defeated Juanita Perez Williams in the Democratic primary. She will face incumbent John Katko (R) in the general election.
Jill Schiller (D) – Ohio
Jill Schiller is a Democratic candidate for Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District in the U.S. House.Schiller is running in the general election on November 6, 2018, after advancing from the primary on May 8, 2018. Jill Schiller lives in Cincinnati, Ohio. She graduated from Central High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Ursinus College and a J.D. from Temple University. Schiller’s career experience includes working as the Senior Vice President of Operations for Downtown Cincinnati Incorporated and as a consultant at her company, Schiller Consulting Group.
Kathy Manning (D) – North Carolina
Kathy understands the importance of economic opportunity, good paying jobs, accessible and affordable health care, and the education and training necessary to prepare people for the jobs of the future. She has spent her life bringing people together to make our community a better place for all, and she is ready to take her skills and determination to Washington to fight for the people of our community and our country. As a U.S. Representative, Kathy will put party aside, put country first and focus on creating economic growth we all share.
Elissa Slotkin (D) – Michigan
Elissa Slotkin is the Democratic nominee for the Michigan 8th Congressional District in the 2018 election. She is former Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs under the Obama Administration. She was the principal advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense and Secretary of Defense on security strategy and policy issues related to the nations and international organizations of Europe (including the North Atlantic Treaty Organization), Russia, the Middle East, Africa, and the Western Hemisphere. She also had oversight for security cooperation programs, including foreign military sales in these regions.
Beverly Goldstein (R) – Ohio
Beverly Goldstein is a Republican candidate for Ohio’s 11th Congressional District in the U.S. House. Goldstein is running in the general election on November 6, 2018, after advancing from the primary on May 8, 2018. Beverly has chaired the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA) Commission that created the national legislative model for licensure of the professions of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology.
Jacky Rosen (D) – Nevada
Rosen has lived in southern Nevada for over 35 years and has worked as a computer programmer, software developer, and designer for some of the biggest companies in Nevada including Summa Corporation, Citibank, and Southwest Gas Company. As former President of Congregation Ner Tamid in Henderson, Rosen has dedicated countless hours to building the community and helping those in need. Rosen led a team that constructed one of the largest solar projects in the City of Henderson and southern Nevada by a non-profit through a public-private partnership.
Naomi Levin (R) – New York
As the daughter of refugees, Naomi Levin learned early in life to value the freedoms protected by the United States Constitution. Her parents witnessed firsthand the devastation communism wrought in Russia and came to America in the late 1970s to raise their family in a land of opportunity, far from the oppression they experienced. Naomi is a millennial and a speaker of 4 languages, including Russian and Hebrew, spoken by many in the district. Naomi received a dual degree in Biology and Computer Science. After becoming a Software Engineer she has been a leader on the forefront of emerging technology in New York City.
Kim Schrier (D) – Washington
Kim Schrier is a Democratic candidate for Washington’s 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House. Schrier is running in the general election on November 6, 2018, after advancing from the primary on August 7, 2018. Schrier earned a B.A. in Astrophysics from the University of California, Berkeley in 1991. She earned an M.D. from University of California, Davis in 1997 and completed her residency at the Stanford University School of Medicine in 2000.
Lena Epstein (R) – Michigan
Lena Epstein is the Republican nominee running to represent Michigan’s 11th Congressional District. She is also a millennial who has spent the last decade as a savvy automotive-industry businesswoman, community leader, and nationally recognized conservative.
Epstein is a third-generation co-owner of Southfield, Michigan-based Vesco Oil Corporation, one of the largest distributors of automotive and industrial lubricants and supporting services in the country.
Elaine Luria (D) – Virginia
Elaine Luria served her country in uniform for 20 years with the philosophy: Be Good. Do Good Work. Elaine sees this simple, but powerful, message lacking in Washington today. When her peers were heading off to college, Elaine was compelled to be part of something bigger than herself and joined the Navy at 17—so she could give back and help build a safer, stronger, and fairer society for this generation and the next.
Susan Wild (D) – Pennsylvania
Growing up in a military family, Susan moved frequently throughout her childhood. But the Lehigh Valley and the 7th District, where she moved more than three decades ago, is the only place she’s ever truly called home.
It’s where her two children were born and attended public schools. It’s where she’s built a well-respected and recognized legal career, including becoming the first female Solicitor of the City of Allentown where she shepherded in a new era of accountability and transparency. And it’s where she’s become a respected and outspoken community leader.