Happy Friday! Welcome to our Media Round Up. Each week, we’re collecting and sharing gender + politics stories. Here’s what caught our eye this week:

Hillary Clinton backs Eleni Kounalakis for California governor

Laurel Rosenhall, The Los Angeles Times

California Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis was inspired to run for her position after Hillary Clinton urged women to run for public office after her loss in the presidential race in 2016. Kounalakis is now using Clinton’s encouragement as the base for her recently launched campaign for Governor of California. In a statement praising Kounalakis, Clinton said that she is a proven fierce leader in education, the economy, and abortion access. Kounalakis is the first to formally enter into the California gubernatorial race, and has received other high-profile endorsements including California’s former U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer.

Read the full story here.

Cherelle Parker on becoming the first woman poised to be Philly mayor: ‘I didn’t get here alone’

Anna Orso, The Philadelphia Inquirer

Last week, Cherelle Parker made history in Philadelphia winning the Democratic nomination for Philadelphia mayor, the first woman to ever do so. Parker attributed some of her success to women in politics from the generations before. A few of the trailblazing women Parker named that came before her include Roxanne Jones, the first Black woman elected to the Pennsylvania state Senate and               C. Delores Ticker, who was appointed Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1971.

Read the full story here.

Black Women Are Serious Contenders in Open-Seat Senate Contests

Kelly Dittmar, Forbes

On Monday, Senator Tom Carper of Delaware announced that he would not be seeking re-election in 2024. Senator Carper’s departure creates an electoral opportunity for the state’s sole member of the U.S. House, Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester, his former intern. Representative Blunt Rochester, who Senator Carper all but endorsed in his remark, became the first woman from Delaware to serve in Congress in 2017, and is now could likely become one of the prospects to fill the absence of Black women in the U.S. Senate. Since Vice President Kamala Harris’s departure in January 2021, no Black women have served in the U.S. Senate. Headed into the 2024 elections, at least three prominent Black women politicians have launched or are likely to launch U.S. Senate bids.

Read the full story here.

Women’s Basketball

The Learning Network, The New York Times

On Friday, the WNBA began its 27^th season with a spotlight resulting from attention garnered by Brittney Griner, who spent nearly 10 months detained in Russia last year. Griner’s foreign detainment drew attention to the plight of others in her situation, but also the financial disparities facing women in sports. Many WNBA players go overseas for higher pay. The maximum salary for WNBA players is $230,000 compared to top players in the NBA making nearly $50 million per year.

Read the full story here.