This week: A woman as President?

A recent profile of Elizabeth Dole in "The New York Times Magazine" stated that if Bob does not win the Presidency, she would be a strong candidate to run for the Oval Office herself. Other countries have elected women as leaders (Thatcher in Great Britain, Meir in Israel, Gandhi in India, Aquino in the Philippines and Bhutto in Pakistan). What would it take for a woman to be elected President of the United States?

Read what others have said so far, and then tell us what you think.

See what Tripod members had to say about the Presidential debates in the last survey. For other past survey results, check our survey archive.

A new Politics & Community survey is published each Thursday.

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Comments or Questions:

DavidMichael: We already elected one President in 1992! Seriously though, I agree with the above statement, but unfortunately she is marred by association with Bob. Although I plan on voting for him, he is not liked much by "Sixties Democrats" who would be likely to elect a female president.

schayne: Sure! A woman could win the Presidency. However, it would take a very strong and conservative woman. Most men would be inclined to vote for a woman whom they feel best represents their interests. There is already a woman running for Vice President on the Libertarian ticket. Her name is Jo Jorgensen. She can be seen on the net at: http://www.lp.org/

rdrake: A number of women could be elected President, but far and away the most promising is not Liddy Dole, but another Kansan. Nancy Kassabaum has name recognition, the Kennedy-Kassabaum bill to her credit and years of public service. She can stir up the Republican Party, take on Al Gore, and build a solid coalition. Democrats do not have anyone in as good a position. Janet Reno might be the leading Democratic female of the moment, unless Justice Ginsberg wants to run.

Emma: I agree with schayne, it would take a very strong conservative woman -- Christie Whitman perhaps? And it really wouldn't surprise me to see Elizabeth Dole run for herself in the future. I'd love to see her and Hillary go at it in an election.

jlin: We could have a woman for President if the good old boys in Washington allow it. Politics is run by men. Some men in Washington and across the country do not think that women are qualified to hold such a high offices. My belief is that women are better canidates and better leaders because they are: better at handling crises,more organized, aren't quick to start wars, don't have egos like men do where they feel that they have to prove themselves. Women can and will be Presidents. Look at what the menfolk have done so far.

kayhh: I think it is time for a woman to be President. Women have qualities that just might be better for the whole world! I don't know if men will vote for a woman, but I WOULD!

magger: I suppose that when I asked this question, I thought people would argue that the leadership qualities of women are inherently different than those of men. Sometimes I think this is true, and then I think of Margaret Thatcher and I am not so sure! I do think it does say something about the enlightenment of a nation if they are able to elect a woman to the highest office.

As for a woman being elected President of the United States, I am a pessimistic that it will have to be a conservative woman who wins the backing of traditionally male bastions: corporations, the military, and Washington.

mecasey: It's inevitable that a woman will run. Probably in the near future. Chances are, first time out, she won't win. But as we enter the 21st century, there will be a woman president. Probably sooner than later. Her VP will probably be a conservative male. Perhaps, though, we'll have an African American prez before we have a woman in the Oval Office.

mutate: Living in a man's world it would take a lot. Men only vote for men (most likely) though I am just a kid (male), if I could vote it would be for the promises the candidate make not their gender.

miade: All I have to say is, women have been in the Oval Office ever day. They may not hold the title of President but do you think that the President makes a decision without his wife's knowledge? It has been said many many times. Behind every great man there is a woman.

AlMiller: I think Elizabeth Dole would be a more electable candidate than her husband. Half the population is female, accounting for Dole's biggest deficit in the polls. We could also have 12 more years of Clintons if Hillary seeks the presidency in 2000 (but don't count on it). I would prefer Marilyn Quayle over Dan Quayle for any elected office. Janet Reno and Justice Ginsburg do not belong in the Oval Office; they serve the country best in their current positions. If Diane Feinstein were to run, she would likely follow the footsteps of Mike Dukakis as a liberal. Figure on one of the more popular female governors to be a dark horse contender for the White House. After all, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton were not well-known national figures before they ran for president.

rschmidt: I think that we will have our first women president when Governor Christine Whitman of NJ decides to run.

mlspeer: Maybe if we could put our male prejudices behind us, since we seem to think that we MUST have a male President, we could step closer to becoming a nation that truly means it when we say that all persons are created equal. Look at all the good other women leaders have done. Why should a President be female? I truly can't think of one good reason why not. And considering all the bad leadership we have had in the past, a woman President might turn things around and make life here in this great nation a little better.

jrjones: My vote would go to a socially and fiscally conservative woman over any liberal counterpart (barring obvious personal character deficits, of course). I really hoped Ms. Kirkpatrick would run, but it never happened. I do not think a woman would necessarily do any better or worse than a man in crises situations. (have you seen women fight with each other? can you imagine if there were nuclear weapons involved?) I certainly hope to see Elizabeth Dole run, whether or not her husband manages to pull this election off. I would vote for her in an instant.

ChrYsA: I love the idea of a woman president. Women are generally more communicative, and have proven to be great leaders. Even housewives show effective power in a family household, caring for children (which in itself contains a number of virtues), being consumer savvy, keeping organized (mentally as well as physically), etc. The only problems are societal paradigms.

The idea that only a man can fill in the role of President is beginning to diminish. As the 21st century rolls by, and the technology and availability of the Internet becomes greater, communication will become (and IS becoming) the fulcrum of all business. Women, biologically proven to be better communicators, will flourish in this society. Women have what it takes to lead us into the next decade. Not Bill Clinton, or Bob Dole, nor any other man can as easily fulfill the presidential needs as a woman can.

Lastly I would like to say that all it takes for a woman to be elected president is time. Time for the internet to be in homes as often as the telephone and tv, time for women everywhere to realize that they are not restricted to "feminine" jobs, and time for society to finally accept and see the woman as she ought to be seen. She is just as qualified to run for president as men are.

smouer: Women leaders are probably rare for both natural and cultural reasons To greatly oversimplify, on the natural side is testosterone, or more precisely, the male aggression genes and hormones which make such a position impossible for the majority of women -- they simply don't have mother nature on their side. Politics is largely a highly competitive, slugfest that does not lend itself well to mainstream feminine strengths (yes, mother nature always compensates -- most women can get everything they want or need by "charming" a man into giving it to them, willingly.) Hey, I didn't invent mother nature, I'm just describing my independent observations. You can't "declare" natural laws void just because you think they're unfair. Current cultural conditioning -- trying to get women to be men -- isn't really working in the long run, even though "parity" freaks are trying to unbalance the playing field in women's favor. Finally, could it be that a culture having a predominance of women leaders is really a culture of wusses, queers and wimps? Just waiting for a more aggressive culture to run over them? Think about it!

Maxgee: We will only have a woman (or, in fact, anyone who isn't both white and male) in the President's office when we rid our selves of the 1950's style delusions we've got about authority. Today, with the country in the middle of a hard right turn so drastic that even the Democrats sound like Republicans, I think it's quite impossible for us to have a woman as president. In fact, I don't think there ever will be an American president that's anything but white or male as long as our two corrupt, self-interested political parties prevail. The Democrats don't have the guts to nominate anyone else, and the Republicans don't have the intelligence or wisdom required. I sometimes wonder if America itself will have to undergo a collapse and re-formation to purge ourselves of our intense bigotry and prejudice.

feminoogie: Before smouer comes back in his independently observed animal pelt to bonk me over the head with his club of natural law and drag me by my silky hair back to the cave (where, of course, that "parity crap" is proven for what it's worth), I'd like to say, WAKE UP! YOUR DREAM IS OVER! Honestly, some people will say and misspell any range of things for attention. I saw his remark in a past survey about Tripod not having the courage to print his responses. Honestly, smouer, you could use some serious editin' and schoolin' to boot.

I'd vote for a woman who represented my ideas and beliefs regarding foreign and domestic policy, who acted with wisdom and who was not owned by corporate interests. That said, we cannot get a man elected without that baggage (although I'd love to see a percentage for Mr. Nader). In order to overcome the closet sexist vote, the candidate would have to be a conservative white woman, no question. No obvious ethnicity. Not Catholic or Jewish either. I share Maxgee's observations on the greasy machine of national politics. As for Sen. Feinstein, I'd argue her liberal qualifications. Perhaps when was mayor of SF she qualified, but not anymore.

But hey, as long as we have kids like mutate looking at what's said rather than who's saying it, maybe there's hope.