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Madame President?U.S. moving closer to the idea of a woman chief executive(AllPolitics, January 10) -- If Elizabeth Dole follows speculation and announces her candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination, she'll join a small, exclusive club of women who have aimed for the nation's highest office.
But how well she, or any other woman who chooses to run, will succeed depends on the perceptions of the American electorate -- and whether the voters are ready to accept a woman as president. It won't be easy, but it's getting easier, said both Republican pollster Christine Matthews and former Democratic Congresswoman Pat Schroeder on CNN Sunday Morning. "Having a woman run for an executive office ... is always tougher than running for legislative office," said Matthews. "It's difficult for a woman," said Schroeder, who briefly explored a possible candidacy in 1987, "but it's a time when people are more willing to give women a chance." While several other countries -- Great Britain, Israel, India and Turkey among them -- have all had a woman as chief executive, the United States has never even seriously considered the idea. "Europe has had a long tradition of czarinas, queens ... we just haven't had that yet," said Schroeder. ( 244 K/23 sec. AIFF or WAV sound) "It's harder to imagine here," added Matthews. "Here we don't have any role models (of) a woman in this position." ( 275 K/25 sec. AIFF or WAV sound) |
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MORE STORIES:Sunday January 10, 1999 |