Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

Tonight, champions of women’s rights – including a record number of women candidates – won control of the House of Representatives.

Voters were more determined than ever to defend women’s rights at the ballot box and in the halls of Congress. Women voted for health care, for reproductive rights, for economic justice, and for gender equality.

The #MeToo movement, the Kavanaugh hearings and an avalanche of hate speech from Donald Trump and his acolytes made voting in this election a priority for women all across the country. Polls measured voter “enthusiasm” but that’s an inadequate term for how women felt about voting. We weren’t just enthusiastic about our vote—we were passionate, we were ferocious, we were relentless.

And we won.

NOW remains committed to electing more women to office, breaking glass ceilings, smashing conventional wisdom and shattering expectations. We are gratified by the election results and energized to work with a new Congress, with women in positions of leadership and women’s rights at the top of the agenda.

The record number of women candidates in this election was a historic milestone—but we are all trailblazers today. We are writing a new chapter in the history of our democracy, and charting a new path towards justice and equality.

We won’t be stopped. We won’t be intimidated. We won’t be defeated.

Contact

NOW Press, press@now.org, 202-628-8669