Texas, Fort Worth lag in electing women to office. Here’s how redistricting can help fix that
Texans, along with the rest of the nation, are going through redistricting — the process in which district boundaries at every level of government have to be adjusted to account for new population data every 10 years.
According to new Census information, Texas saw a population growth of 15.9 percent since 2010. While Texas has grown in population, we have yet to increase the number of women serving in elected office.
Currently, the Lone Star State is falling behind in the Gender Parity Index Score. This score analyzes women’s recent electoral successes. In each branch of government, Texas is ranked at 45th of the 50 states and is amongst the lowest in women’s representation.
Only one Texas woman has ever served in the U.S Senate. Additionally, despite our population size, only seven women currently serve in the U.S. House, only 26.5 percent of women serve in the state Legislature, and only 27.2 percent of women serve in municipal offices. Yet, Texas women are 50.3 percent of the population.
The redistricting process will allow for a keen opportunity to recruit women. There will also be new opportunities to fill seats on boards and commissions appointed by elected officials. Local boards make recommendations to elected officials that affect our everyday lives.
In other cases redistricting will also create opportunities for women to run for new seats without the disadvantage of running against an incumbent. Research shows an advantage for incumbent candidates in comparison to first-time candidates. All of these are areas in which we can increase women’s political leadership.
In Fort Worth, voters approved a change to the city charter in 2016 to add two new council districts following the 2020 Census. This change will go into effect for the 2023 municipal election and boundary lines for the two new districts are currently being considered.
To date, one-third of City Council members are women, in comparison to the female population of 51 percent.
Moreover, Fort Worth’s 2023 candidates in the two new districts are likely to have the advantage of running without the seat being previously held by an incumbent. The city’s Redistricting Task Force recently selected a map to recommend to the City Council for consideration. This map creates a district in the southeast sector of the city that carves a minority opportunity district.
This map would provide the opportunity for a Latina to serve on the Fort Worth City Council. A Latina has not served as a councilwoman, although Latinos make up 35 percent of the population. A final map is expected to be approved in late March for use in May 2023 municipal elections.
A majority of board and commission seats in Fort Worth are also lacking women’s representation. That means key voices are missing from important decisions that affect all of us. Research consistently shows that mixed-gender decision-making bodies are beneficial. Appointing more women to serve on local boards and commissions is a small step that can add critical voices to our democratic process.
Redistricting can either support or hinder our goals towards a more representative democracy — more open seats provides opportunities for new voices in political leadership. This is the right time for Texan women to think about and plan to run for elected office or apply for an appointment.
The Lone Star State can become a proverbial “North Star” for women’s political leadership and representative democracy, giving us even more reason to be proud to be Texans.
