Women’s Public Leadership Network partners to increase the number of women in public office in New Mexico

August 10, 2020 –  RISE New Mexico today was awarded Organization and Program grant from Women’s Public Leadership Network (WPLN) as part of a new grant program designed to support state-based organizations that educate, organize, and inspire women to enter public office.“

Rise New Mexico was created with the goal of activating and amplifying the voices of women interested in developing pragmatic economic solutions for our state,” said Kelly Fajardo, founder of the Rise New Mexico, “everyone benefits when business-saavy women are able to help shape our economic and fiscal policies. We are excited to partner with WPLN to inspire more women to claim their seat at the governing table."

WPLN chose to make these inaugural grants in conjunction with the Centennial of the 19th Amendment celebrated this month.  Through its growing network of partners, including RISE Mexico, and a rich offering of online resources, WPLN is pursuing its mission of bringing more voices to the table, equipping commonsense, pragmatic women to enter public office.

“There has long been a need for state resources that offers in-person training and mentor support for women seeking to hold public office, and who identify as right of center in their principles.  It’s no secret that women remain underrepresented in political leadership, especially center-right women.  Our hope is that through our work, more women from all walks of life will have access to the tools they need to step into leadership positions,” said Larissa Martinez, Co-Founder & Executive Director of WPLN.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, granting the majority of women the right to vote. But progress has been slow when it comes to holding elected office. Only 24 percent of Congressional seats are held by women, and women account for only 29 percent of state legislatures. WPLN supports the advancement of women in leadership roles ranging from their local school boards to the U.S. Congress.

According to the Center for American Women and Politics, a record number of women have filed to run for U.S. House seats in 2020, including a record number of Republican women. As CAWP director Debbie Walsh said in a statement, “We’ll never get to parity without women on both sides of the aisle running and winning.”  WPLN’s goal is to do just that, continuing the momentum to every level of government, increasing the number of women in both elected and appointed positions.

“We want to help equip women at every step of their public service journey,” said Jenifer Sarver, chair of the WPLN board of directors, “and with these grants we are putting our money where our mouth is.”  A former congressional candidate herself, Sarver added, “When individuals with diverse backgrounds are in office, new perspectives are injected into policy discussions helping produce better policy outcomes for all Americans.  A diversity of ideas leads to better decisions overall.”

WPLN is committed to building a network of stakeholders, including a robust list of expert practitioners, former elected officials, and community leaders, as well as state-based and national organizations in the nonprofit and corporate sector, who are identifying, engaging, and training women to run for elected office, obtain political appointment, and become more involved in the political process.  The nonpartisan organization is the first of its kind on the center-right and seeks to level the playing field across the political divide by actively focusing on women who believe in commonsense, pragmatic public policy solutions.

As a state partner, RISE was invited to apply for the newly created grant, which was designed to help build-out capacity and expand outreach in New Mexico.  In addition RISE has access to online and in-person training opportunities, leadership summits, and issues education.

“RISE has exhibited a commitment to diversifying leadership through fostering women leaders at the local and state level in New Mexcio,” Martinez said. “Through these grant dollars, we will help them scale their model to provide leadership training opportunities to build skill sets and increase outreach efforts even more so, and to build out that pipeline of women leaders at every level.”WPLN is funded by a combination of private donors, philanthropic organizations and foundations, including Democracy Fund and Pivotal Ventures, the investment company created by Melinda Gates. Through the support of their generous funders, WPLN is able to offer its support, resources and content at no cost to its members.

For more information visit www.risenewmexico.org and www.womenspublicleadership.net.