New Year “Resolutions,” Part 3 – Gender on the Ballot has a special feature this month: New Year “resolutions” from our expert bloggers for closing the gender gap in politics. We’ll publish a few each week during the month of January, and we welcome your thoughts for 2026 at ongender@gmail.com.

Cynthia Richie Terrell, Founder and Executive Director, and Alana Persson, Communications Lead, RepresentWomen

• “In 2026, as we mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, RepresentWomen resolves to honor Abigail Adams’ call to “remember the ladies” by designing a democracy that finally harnesses women’s full participation and power. Women make up half of the population, yet remain underrepresented in elected office — a gap that persists when electoral rules fail to fully reflect the diversity and collaboration voters want. This year, we commit to addressing the barriers women face by expanding ranked choice voting and supporting legislative rule changes that translate women’s leadership into lasting representation.” Read their blog here.

Angel Rogers, Director, Political Affairs, Phillips

• “In 2026, I hope to see more integrated pipelines that empower Black women to run for office, launch and scale businesses, and rise to the highest levels of corporate leadership. Expanding access to training, capital, sponsorship, procurement opportunities, and transparent advancement pathways, while tracking progress across candidacy and promotion rates, will continue to drive meaningful change. Let’s also make self-care a standard of leadership, ensuring that Black women thrive personally as they break new ground professionally.” Read her blog here.

Bonnie Stabile, Associate Professor, Founder and Director, Gender and Policy Center, George Mason University

• “In 2026 I resolve to highlight innovative policy solutions devised and championed by entrepreneurial women leaders that help solve pervasive public problems and advance women’s representation by  sharing strategies, celebrating successes and fostering opportunities to advance collaboration and community.” Read her blog here.

Viva de Vicq, Senior Direction, Breakthrough Campaigns

• “For 2026, my resolution is to actively champion and witness a significant increase in women’s presence and leadership within data, analytics, and artificial intelligence.  It’s not merely about filling roles; it’s about recognizing that diverse perspectives, particularly those of women, are essential to building more robust, ethical, and inclusive data-driven solutions.” Read her blog here.

Varina Winder, Co-founder of the Arch Collaborative

• “If 2025 was a year of destruction, my hope is that 2026 is a year of thoughtful rebuilding. Recognizing that many of the systems that were designed to advance gender equality around the world no longer exist, my colleagues and I at the new Arch Collaborative strategic initiative – are committed to doing our part to analyse, convene, and help implement new ideas that will ensure women’s rights and gender equality are non-negotiable.” Read her blog here.

Bev-Freda L. Jackson, Ph.D., Adjunct Professorial Lecturer, American University

• “In Virginia, we have the first woman governor – Abigail Spanberger. We have the first Muslim woman elected to statewide office – Lt. Governor Ghazala Hashmi. Justice Cleo E. Powell became the first African American woman in the position of Chief Justice for the Virginia Supreme Court. In 2026 it is truly a historic time for women and politics in Virginia. My resolution is to chronicle the milestone moments, the impact, message and vision for the Commonwealth with the leadership of these three women.” Read her blog here.