Women are the most coveted voter block in America.
More women than men have voted in presidential elections since 1980.
Even though the voter gender gap in the 2020 presidential election was narrower in than it was in 2016, the media widely acknowledged that women decided the 2020 election.
My prediction is that 2024 will be no different.
But this election season, the prevailing narrative about women’s priorities could not be more wrong.
Since July, I’ve been traveling the country on a battleground state bus tour. My team and I logged 10,000 miles across 12 states, speaking with women of all political stripes.
If the punditry was correct, then all summer long I would have heard women bemoaning the Dobbs Supreme Court decision and their lack of abortion access.
Women would have come out in droves to back Vice President Kamala Harris since her platform is so laser focused on abortion, and former President Donald Trump would be packing his bags.
That’s not what I heard at all.
First, there is no groundswell for Harris just because she is a female or because of her favorable stance on abortion rights.
This is not a unifying issue for women.
Likewise, women feel mixed about their standing in America today.
A Suffolk University poll of likely Pennsylvania voters conducted earlier this month corroborates what I heard.
According to the poll, 47% of women say they are better off than they were four years ago. But 50% of women say they are worse off or no different than they were four years ago.
So as far as the female independent vote is concerned, it’s still a toss-up.
Second, what I heard resoundingly from women along the bus tour is they resent that the government and those in political power do not honor their role as the COO in their households.
Women fought for decades for the right to vote, for equal treatment in society and a place in the working world. But more than any other time in history, the government now represents “the new patriarchy.”
What do I mean by that?
Public schools are withholding information from parents — including mothers —about their children purportedly selecting new pronouns or gender identities.
As of May of this year, a database maintained by Parents Defending Education lists 1,062 public school districts in 38 states and the District of Columbia with written policies that authorize or require withholding gender-related information from parents.
What strips American women of their rights more than restricting their ability to raise and be involved in the lives of their own children?
Third, women are resoundingly upset about the rampant inflation and the poor economic climate.
Not a single bus stop wrapped up without women stressing about how they will put food on the table and help provide for their families.
No one is more in tune with the everyday challenges of the Biden-Harris economy than women.
Even in states that seem to be doing well, there is rampant economic uncertainty.
For example, Nevada is the sixth-fastest growing economy among US states, yet unemployment concerns still remain. With demands on households for income and childcare, women are poised to speak with their vote about what the next leader of our nation should prioritize.
Women also said to me that they’re worried about their communities — about safety, crime and that their neighborhoods and schools are places where kids can go without becoming victims to the next mass shooting or news headline.
And they worry about illegal drugs, especially fentanyl.
These are trying times, and all Americans — including women — look to our elected officials to enact policies that will advance our nation and improve our lives.
My organization, Concerned Women for America, exists to protect and promote Biblical values and Constitutional principles, and we encourage our members to vote for candidates who will honor and advance those values.
Early voting has started in many states, and candidates have roughly six weeks left until election night.
I encourage them to listen to women and understand what they truly care about, and not to perpetuate false narratives about issues that are not on women’s minds.
Penny Nance is president and CEO of Concerned Women for America.
