“With five female premiers in Canada, women are making remarkable strides in politics. Still, there is much work to be done in getting women on the ballot. With an election looming in Nova Scotia, it’s time to get women excited and prepared to run for office,” says Raylene Lang-Dion, National Chair of Equal Voice.
Equal Voice, a multi-partisan national organization to promote women in politics, is doing just that.
A one-day workshop planned for Saturday, February 16th, 2013 in Halifax will encourage more women to take on political roles. After the workshop, interested women can arrange mentorship by experienced politicians and party officials who have agreed to serve as strategic advisors or campaign coaches.
This workshop will share the insights of Nova Scotia women active in politics as well as the advice of communications and campaign professionals. Participants will gain some of the skills needed to win nominations in contested ridings. A second objective is to encourage women to run for positions inside political parties. The workshops are free of charge, but advance registration by February 12 is required.
The last provincial election of 2009 saw the number of women in the House go from nine to twelve but Professor Carbert reminds us that we cannot take any further increases for granted.
“The only way to elect more women is to recruit more women to run for office. In the 2009 election, few women were candidates: seventeen for the NDP, ten for the Liberals, and seven for the PCs. That’s not enough in a province that has fifty-two MLAs. These workshops will help to recruit more women.”
A second workshop is planned for Cape Breton. Workshop funding and support are provided by Status of Women Canada and the NS Advisory Council on the Status of Women.
“Equal Voice is delighted to focus specifically on providing tools for prospective women candidates and party activists in Nova Scotia. We hope to follow up on this event with other women across the country,” added Nancy Peckford, Executive Director of Equal Voice.
For more information, or to register for the workshop: Jennifer Mowbray at nsproject@equalvoice.ca.
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