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

There are just 9 female governors. Both parties want change.

Liz Crampton, Politico

With Kathy Hochul assuming the position of Governor of New York this past August, there are now nine female governors in the United States. Nine is the highest number of female governors that have served at the same time with the record first achieved in 2004. When women run for office, research shows that they have to be more likeable, work harder than their male counterparts, and raise more money. Both Democrats and Republicans feel a sense of urgency to have more women in gubernatorial positions and are ready to invest more money and resources into women running; however, both parties have unique strategies in place to achieve these goals.

Read the full story here.   

In a personal turn, 3 lawmakers testify about their abortions

Candice Norwood, The 19^th*

This past Thursday, Representatives Cori Bush, Pramila Jayapal, and Barbara Lee opened up about their personal experiences with abortion during a House Oversight Committee hearing on reproductive rights in the country. The last notable occurrence that a Representative spoke on their personal story with reproductive rights was during a debate on the House floor in 2011 when Rep. Jackie Speier reflected on her second trimester abortion. Gloria Steinem was also in attendance and provided a testimony in support of abortion access for U.S. citizens.

Read the full story here.

The First But Not The Last: 9 Latinas Who Made Political History

She Should Run

Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! Over time there have been a plethora of Latina women leading the way in the political world. From Soledad Chacon being the first Latina woman elected to statewide executive office in the United States, to Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor being the third woman justice and first Latina woman to serve on the Supreme Court, there are many more women to learn about.

Read the full story here.

‘We will not go quietly’: Women’s March organizes over 500 marches nationwide for reproductive rights

Christine Fernando, USA Today

“For a long time, groups of us were ringing the alarm bell around abortion access and many of us were told we were hysterical and Roe v. Wade will never be overturned,” [Rachel O’Leary Carmona, Woman’s March executive director said.] “But now it’s clear that our fears were both rational and proportional. We are at a break-glass moment for America, and now’s the time for mass mobilization and federal action.”

More than 650 marches in all 50 states and Washington D.C. will happen this Saturday, October 2^nd. With Texas’s Senate Bill 8 taking effect and the possibility of more states following suit, reproductive rights activists think the time is now to mobilize.

Read the full story here.

Does funding help encourage women to run for legislative office?

Ragnhild Muriaas, Amy G. Mazur and Season Hoard, Washington Post

One of the main barriers that keeps women out of political office is funding. Research shows that women tend to have to raise more money than their male counterparts to increase their chances of winning an election. Because of this, many political organizations have been created to help fund money for female candidates, like how the Justice Democrats assisted Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Some funding methods prove more supportive than others.

Read the full story here.