Welcome to the Media Round Up! This week we’re collecting and sharing our favorite gender + politics stories.

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Want Signs Of Bipartisanship? In The House, Look To Women
The 19th, Grace Panetta

Despite widespread political polarization and gridlock across the aisle, there have been congressional “glimmers of bipartisanship” driven by women this year. At the beginning of 2025, Reps. Brittany Petterson (D-CO) and Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) banded together to challenge House leadership, urging the chamber to be more accommodating to new mothers. Recently, three of the most outspoken House GOP women diverged from their party in an effort to release more of the Epstein files. And just this week, Reps. Kat Cammack (R-FL) and Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA) led a group of bipartisan House women on a resolution advocating for expanded early screening for a blood-clotting disorder known as Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS). Though research alone does not indicate that female legislators are more bipartisan than men at the federal level, instances in this Congress demonstrate how “unlikely coalitions of women” have united across the aisle.

The Gen Z Gender Gap in Politics Doesn’t End There

The latest NBC News Decision Desk Poll found that gender differences in attitudes toward politics are also reflected in cultural and financial issues, including immigration, trade, family and the workplace. These differences become even more complex when filtered by respondents’ choice in the 2024 presidential election. Overall, Gen Z disapproves of President Trump, with 64% disapproving compared to 47% approving. Examined by gender, young women’s disapproval is stronger (74% to 26%) than young men’s (53% – 47%). Further, men and women who voted for Trump identified being married and having children as significant indicators of life success, more than men and women who voted for Kamala Harris. Men who voted for Trump ranked marriage and children even higher than women who voted for Trump. The same was true for men and women who voted for Harris – men ranked marriage and children higher than women. All four groups ranked “having a job or career you find fulfilling” somewhere in their top 3 indicators of success, along with “achieving financial independence” or “having enough money to do the things you want to do.” Interpretations of the poll’s results speculate that barriers for women’s career opportunities and compensation, perceived loss of male privilege, and uncertainty about the future are possible factors in the poll’s findings. One thing seems clear – gender and politics intersect in ways that both reflect and shape the cultural and political landscape. Finally, SAVE THE DATE – October 8, 2025 – for She Leads, Women in Politics & Leadership, our new Gender on the Ballot poll that paints a compelling picture of what it means for women to lead in 2025. More information in Upcoming Events.

Conservative Values On The Rise

Conservative messaging and policies, which have emerged alongside a broader political shift under the Trump administration, are impacting women across the nation. Since taking office, the White House has sought to restrict non-profit organizations’ access to federal domestic violence grants; on Monday, Trump himself “downplayed the severity of domestic violence crimes” during a speech he delivered at the Religious Liberty Commission’s meeting at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. Additionally, a recent shift in women’s beauty standards away from body positivity and towards thinness seems to be, at least in part, explained by conservative messaging: as diversity and DEI initiatives face pushback, white conservative values are once again gaining prominence; Trump’s endorsement of conservative values has given women a platform to “market tradwifery as glamorous and attainable, encouraging followers to invest in plastic surgery and other beauty modifications to meet these ideals.” As conservative ideals gain traction again, some are publicly advocating for a patriarchal society where women’s roles are “primarily domestic.” Experts claim that the rise in these ideals is a backlash against cultural shifts, warning that this ideology could reverse “decades” of progress for women in politics and society.

Kamala Harris’ Book Pinpoints One of Democrats’ Biggest Problems
MSNBC, Max Burns

In her upcoming memoir, “107 Days,” Kamala Harris reveals her complex personal and political experiences with the Biden team. Throughout her time in the White House, Harris was subjected to a multitude of insults and barbs, such as rumors surrounding an unfavorable relationship with First Lady Jill Biden and comments about her playing a “zero substantive role” with a focus on “stilted photo ops.” Additionally, Harris experienced an uphill battle to be seen at major Black cultural events. Reactions to the book include validation from insiders, including Rhonda Elaine Foxx, former Biden campaign director of women’s engagement. In  a post on X, Foxx recounted emailing Biden staffers about the dismissive way women of color were treated on the campaign, specifically around the uphill battle to give Harris any visible presence at major Black cultural events — the same Black voters who played a pivotal role in Biden’s 2020 victory, and who Biden personally pledged to represent in his inaugural remarks.

Court Cases Will Impact Millions of Women

Recently, courts across the country have dominated the news cycle, ranging in news from current to future decisions. On Monday, the Supreme Court announced a temporary ruling, allowing President Trump to fire Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter. In the future, the Supreme Court will decide if they will weigh in on the lawsuit that challenges her dismissal. President Trump also saw the announcement of another court case on Monday, as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, decided to uphold the $83.3 million dollar defamation lawsuit brought by E. Jean Carroll. In addition, the federal appeals court dismissed President Trump’s efforts to appeal the case via presidential immunity. Finally, on Monday, New York Attorney General Letitia James reported that she would defend New York’s abortion protections in a lawsuit brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. New York is one of several states where abortion providers are protected by shield laws — statutes that ban cooperation with other states’ attempts to enforce abortion bans. The law prohibits New York law enforcement officials from arresting or extraditing health professionals who provided abortions that are legal in New York. In a civil lawsuit, Texas is challenging the ability of New York medical providers from providing telehealth abortion access to Texas patients.

Fertility Issues Draw Bipartisan Interest

Family centered policies have been a topic of significant discussion. Representative Sara Jones, a Democrat from California, opened up about her experience with freezing her eggs over the summer break. Representative Jones decided to share her experience, as she believed that it would assist her colleagues in Congress, many of whom are older and male, while considering an upcoming bill that she has written. The bill would expand military health coverage for fertility treatments. Likewise, conservative policy advocates have emphasized their support for pro-family policies, following the announcement of declining fertility rates in the United States. While there is a significant variation of proposed policies, advocates are eager for President Trump and the White House to prioritize the declining fertility rates in some capacity, as they view it as an existential crisis.

Melinda Gates Announces $100M Investment In Women’s Health Research
Yahoo! News, Katie Kindelan

On Wednesday, philanthropist Melinda French Gates announced a new partnership that will commit $100 million to accelerate research on women’s health. In an interview with “Good Morning America” co-anchor Robin Roberts, French Gates said that the partnership – between Pivotal, a group of organizations she founded, and Wellcome Leap, a nonprofit organization – will focus on areas of women’s health with the “highest rates of mortality,” including autoimmune disease, and mental and cardiovascular health. “We really can do a lot more research in these areas,” French Gates said, “and I’m talking in years, not decades – to change women’s lives.”

Then and Now

In the past and present, women have made strides in arenas once previously believed to be reserved for men. Back in 1978, when NASA announced that six women would be a part of the thirty-five new astronauts entering a “new era of spaceflight,” the agency had to adapt to accommodate female cadets. The organization had the brilliance to navigate space travel, but did not necessarily have a full understanding of a woman’s priorities, “or even their menstrual cycles.” Despite being overly qualified, “these women constantly had to prove themselves.” Today, professional female athletes may find themselves in the same scenario, though improvements are being made: Unrivaled, a professional women’s basketball league now boasts of paying the highest salaries in the history of American women’s sports teams. The league will also add two new teams and eighteen new roster spots. Unrivaled’s quick expansion is largely due to the league outperforming targets in its first year, a “testament to the strong business model we’ve built,” Unrivaled President of Basketball Luke Cooper said.