In Charlotte, thousands of angry women marched. That was only the beginning.
"The enormity of what I experienced had a pretty profound impact on me," says Harden, 50. "I was very inspired."
So much so that Harden, who teaches education at UNC Charlotte, plans to launch her bid for
She's one of thousands of women across the country who have translated last year's passion into activism, even candidacies. For many women in
So far, nearly 600 women have declared their intent to run for
Emily's List, which helps elect Democratic women who support abortion rights, has heard from 26,000 women interested in running for office this year across the country. Two years ago the number was about 900.
"We've never seen anything like this before in our history, this is truly a sea change," says spokeswoman
In
"I don't accept the premise that there is a whole bunch more Democratic women than Republican women (running)," says
Fueled by Trump and #metoo
Last year's marches in
"The Women's March, even if it said it wasn't a Trump march, was basically aimed at Donald Trump," says
Many of the women who marched a year ago have found their energy fueled by Trump's stormy first year as well as by the sexual harassment revelations that have rocked
"The momentum has been sustained in large part because
A May survey of more than 2,000 college-educated adults by American and Loyola Marymount universities and
"It's hard to overstate Democratic women's dismay with the president," the report said. "When asked whether they'd rather have a colonoscopy or a private lunch with Trump, more than half of female
The reaction to the flood of sexual harassment claims also appears to be favoring
A poll for
"Things haven't gotten better," says Meier, 48. "The #metoo movement has spurred anger. And it's not just women's issues. There's been an attack on the media that angers us."
No longer on the sidelines
The anger is spurring a lot of women to run for office.
"I've heard a number of women say things like 'I've been on the sidelines and I realize I can't sit on the sidelines anymore,' or "I can't wait my turn'," says
That description fits
In some ways, the new women's movement is not unlike the tea party. A mirror-opposite philosophically, that movement energized conservatives across the country after Democrat
"It has similar dynamics in the sense that both of them had a very strong grassroots component," says political scientist
"It's getting the right people elected to office who will recognize our values and treat women with respect," says Anderson, 68, a former engineering company executive. "We're not going back. We've made progress but we need to make a lot more."
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