Iowa’s democratic party hosted an event last night to court women voters. Lieutenant Governor Sally Pederson says typically the more women that vote in an election, the better democrats do. Pederson says in the 2000 presidential election, 238-thousand women who were eligible did not vote, and she says after working so long to get the right to vote in America, women should use it. Pederson says the Iowa Democratic Party is launching a ten-city tour to “educate” women about their power at the polls.She admits the folks who show up at such events are those who do vote, but it helps remind them their “sisters” aren’t voting as much as they should. The Iowa G-O-P is also wooing women. Iowa Republican Party Chuck Larson says the way to get more women involved in the elective process is to recruit more to run for office. Larson says recruiting more women candidates a top priority for Republicans and there are some outstanding women candidates this year. He says Iowa Republicans have formed a “Winning With Women” effort to bring women voters into the process. Larson says taxes and the economy are also issues that appeal strongly to women. Larson says good-paying jobs and a strong economy are just as important to women as they are to men. Iowa ranks fourth in the nation in registering women to vote and eighth in female voter turnout, but only 29th in the country in the number of women elected to public office — something both parties say should be improved.
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