Early Bird Registration Ends January 27

Registration for the fifth-annual Women’s Leadership Conference in San Francisco is now open. Attendees can save up to 30 percent off the regular conference fee when signing up during the early bird discount period.

This year’s conference theme: Be Exceptional

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But Early Bird registration is $200 <<<<< PRICE GOOD TILL JANUARY 27th! Early Bird registration for EWIP members is $140 For more information about membership (not required to attend the conference) see our member benefits page.

Big Gains for Women & Minorities

Tammy Baldwin (Wis.)American voters rejected big money influence when much of the one billion dollars spent by outside groups proved to be ineffective. The 2012 election, however, reaped huge gains for Democrats, progressive women, minorities, and the environment. Voters in Missouri, Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and Indiana sent candidates home with an electoral smack down for miscalculating what really matters to women and non-whites, the rising American electorate.

Mazie Hirono (Hawaii)It was a record-breaking year for women with satisfying victories happening in Missouri, where Todd “legitimate rape” Akin was shut down by Claire McCaskill, and in Indiana, where Richard Mourdock, a Tea Party candidate lost his bid for a Senate seat after asserting he would not make an exception for abortions in the case of rape because pregnancies are “something that God intended to happen.”

Credit is given to Washington senator and Democratic senatorial campaign chair, Patty Murray, who kept reproductive rights, Medicare, and jobs front and center. She identified candidates like McCaskill, Tammy Baldwin (Wis.) and Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) as a key part of the Democratic Party’s strategy to keep the Senate. The 113th Congress will include the most female Senate members ever (20), with numerous “firsts”. Baldwin, will be the first openly gay Senator, and Mazie Hirono (Hawaii) is the first Asian-American woman and first Buddhist to join the Senate.

Tammy Baldwin (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Gender Gap or Marriage Gap?

There has been a lot of media yammering in this election cycle about the impact of the “women’s vote” but despite what is implied by the stories and campaign rhetoric, women are not a single voting bloc. According to valuable research from the Voter Participation Center (VPC) “women’s marital status is a key predictor of electoral participation, preferences and values. Married women are more likely to register and to vote than unmarried women.”

Unmarried women (never married, separated, divorced, or widowed) are one of the fastest growing demographic groups in America, hugely increasing their percentage of all potential voters. No doubt women will have a significant impact on the election, but if unmarried women turn out in larger proportions than they have in the past, it will have a greater impact on electing more progressive candidates and causes. According to the VPC’s fact sheet, cleverly designed as a binder full of statistics about single women, unmarried women tend to vote for the more progressive candidates. Boosting the civic engagement of unmarried women will lead to more elected representatives and public policies that better reflect the rising American electorate.

With less than two weeks before the national election don’t succumb to the weariness of the electoral process. There are dozens of important races and issues on the ballot for November 6th. Hopefully the outbursts from women on the social web over recent gaffs such as “binders full of women” and the more disturbing and clueless statements from current and potential members of Congress on birth control, rape and pregnancy, will translate into more women, and more single women, showing up at the polls.

There are many websites to help sort through the candidate positions and ballot measures. We recommend non-partisan sites, like BallotPedia and Project Vote Smart for factual information on the “down-ballot” issues that are often overlooked but are as important in this election as the presidential race. EWIP is a 501(c)(3) and therefore we won’t endorse any candidate, but if you want to put in a plea for a cause, or candidate worthy of attention, please add your voice to our comment section. Help your friends, families, and unmarried neighbors get out there and vote. Our country, our democracy depend on it.

SAVE THE DATE

Fifth Annual Women’s Leadership Conference is March 6, 2013

Alix Kennedy The members of the 10 year old organization, Women in Periodical Publishing resolved to expand their mission in 2008, and organize an event to better showcase the annual award they bestow on a female leader. They decided their award, called the Exceptional Woman in Publishing Award, was not being sufficiently celebrated when they had to squeeze the presentation into one or another magazine conference. It was time to honor the accomplished recipients with an event they designed themselves. The first Women’s Leadership Conference in 2009 honored Alix Kennedy and featured dozens of women speaking on the major topics of the day.

Diega Rivera frescoSince then, the organization has changed their name to Exceptional Women in Publishing (EWIP), put on four conferences, and with new branding, more sponsor support, and an influx of new energy they have expanded outreach to included people in publishing, digital media, education, technology, and other innovative organizations and enterprises creating and absorbing content. Using social media and other new tools that connect people with ideas, the event is now a must attend. The EWIP Women’s Leadership Conference has earned a reputation for relevant, insightful discussions, with an all female speaker roster this unique national event provides a platform for the women making the revolutionary changes in the publishing and digital media “industry”. [2012 Video]

Exceptional Women in Publishing will convene the 5th annual conference at the newly remodeled City Club of San Francisco.
SAVE THE DATE: Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Get news as it develops here:  Women’s Leadership Conference 2013