In recent years, there have been increasing amounts of women running for public office across America. In 2016, America saw Hillary Clinton become the first female major-party nominated Presidential candidate. Illinois also saw their second female U.S. Senator, Tammy Duckworth.

Despite these achievements, however, women have yet to achieve equality within representation in politics. Illinois has yet to see a female governor, and Springfield has had only one female mayor. Currently, out of the ten people serving as alderman on the Springfield city council, only two are women.

LaKeisha Purchase has announced her candidacy for Ward 5 Alderman, and if elected, would bring the total amount of women to three.

Currently on the Lincoln Land Community College Board of Trustees, there are eight elected positions- and seven of them are men. The student trustee is a woman but is a non-voting member.

A study conducted at Tulane University concluded that when more women are in public office, more funding is given towards social services, which women tend to rely on more heavily than men. This shows that women’s different experiences push them towards policy decisions that affect the public.

Clearly, more work can be done to ensure that more women are running for office and are able to serve in elected positions. The editorial board feels that female representation in Springfield politics could be improved and would benefit the community as a whole.