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

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Nydia Velázquez, a New York trailblazer in Congress, to retire next year
The New York Times, Maya King

On Thursday, Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) said that she will not seek re-election in 2026 at the completion of her sixteenth term. Velázquez, a Democratic “trailblazer” who was the first Puerto Rican woman elected to Congress, cited calls for generational change in her party, noting that she has been considering retiring for a few years. In an emotional phone interview from her office in Washington, she said, “I love this work and I love my district, but I believe now is the right moment to step aside and allow a new generation of leaders to step forward.” Her decision to step down is the latest in a “volatile string” of developments among New York City Democrats as the 2026 midterm election cycle draws nearer.

Releasing the files

In an extremely rare action on Tuesday, the Senate agreed by “unanimous consent” to approve the House-passed bill to require the Justice Department to release all unclassified documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump signed the bill on Wednesday night, reversing course on his months long campaign to halt the effort to release the records. The controversy surrounding the Epstein files has fractured some relations in the GOP, as several Republican women broke rank with the Trump administration in support of disclosing the records – Reps. Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and Nancy Mace (R-SC) bucked party leadership and ultimately voted in favor of releasing the files. Ahead of the House vote earlier this week, a group of women victimized by Epstein spoke out at the U.S. Capitol, imploring elected officials to put aside political agendas and focus on this matter as a “human issue.” Survivor Haley Robson said, “I do not feel free today,” urging every member of Congress to “choose the survivors, choose the children.”

When will we welcome the first Madam President? 

While promoting her new book co-authored with her stylist, “The Look,” former first lady Michelle Obama discussed the future of a female president in the United States. Last year, Obama threw her support behind former Vice President Kamala Harris as she ran in the 2024 presidential election. However, at this event, Obama argued that America is “not ready” for a female president and that the country has “a lot of growing up to do” before we can reach that point. Notably, Obama addressed the discussion around her own presidential bid. Though she has previously stated she does not want to run, Obama said, “Don’t even look at me about running because you all are lying. You’re not ready for a woman. You are not. So don’t waste my time.” Her insights follow a historic moment in American history, where 28 percent of governors are female. Despite choosing its first female governor in 1924, America has yet to see a female governor in every state, as prejudice is still an obstacle for women running for office. Next year’s primaries ensure that America will see a lot of possibilities when it comes to smart, hard-working , and principled female politicians.

Democratic Women’s Caucus Demands Release of Pregnant Immigrants in ICE Detention
The 19th* News, Mel Leonor Barclay

For the second time this year, the first occurring in July, the Democratic Women’s Caucus has demanded the release of any pregnant, postpartum, and nursing immigrants who do not pose a security risk and are being held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The lawmakers cited “deeply concerning” reports of pregnant women who have been arrested and detained, as these circumstances may pose risks to their health and their pregnancies. The letter was signed by 61 lawmakers and calls on the administration to adhere to a Biden-era policy directive which bans ICE from detaining and arresting pregnant, postpartum, and nursing immigrants unless there are “exceptional circumstances.” In addition to the release of these immigrants, lawmakers have asked for a review of the processes and training of ICE officials related to the treatment of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing immigrants. The caucus is also asking for the release of data regarding the number of pregnant immigrants that have been detained, births, miscarriages, and other obstetric emergencies. Notably, lawmakers are asking for a response from ICE and the administration within 45 days.

Katie Wilson, a Political Newcomer, is Elected Mayor in Seattle
The New York Times, Anna Griffin

Katie Wilson, a first-time candidate, defeated incumbent Bruce Harrell to become Seattle’s next mayor in one of the city’s tightest elections. Prior to her political debut, Wilson worked as a community organizer and was a co-founder of the Transit Riders Union, an advocacy group dedicated to expanding transit access, increasing renter protections, and adding housing throughout the city. Throughout her campaign, Wilson advocated for higher taxes on the wealthy, in direct opposition to Harrell who became the face of an effort to block new taxes on high earners to pay for housing construction. Wilson, a progressive Democrat, painted Harrell as a tool of the establishment, while she represented the more progressive generational and ideological shifts within the Democratic Party. Wilson is one of a number of women who were elected throughout the country this year, which is highlighted in the November 11th Gender on the Ballot Blog.

League Of Women Voters sues federal agencies over new voter registration rule
Tampa Free Press, Leslie Bolden

The League of Women Voters (LWV) and five of its state and local chapters filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday against the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and other federal officials. The lawsuit challenges the new rule – enacted in August – that prohibits nonpartisan civic engagement groups from providing voter registration and promoting civic engagement to new citizens at administrative naturalization ceremonies. The LWV argues that the new rule violates their first amendment right to engage in political speech and activities. The lawsuit also claims the federal agencies failed to adhere to the required procedures outlined in the Administrative Procedure Act when adopting the new policy. For decades, the LWV, as a core part of their mission, has provided voter registration at naturalization ceremonies. However, the new rule reverses policy, only allowing government officials to offer voter registration services following certain ceremonies. Celina Stewart, the CEO of LWV, believes this new rule is a deliberate move by this administration to deny new citizens access to the democratic process and attack the League’s very mission. According to the League, the rule change has already forced state and local chapters to cancel at least 166 planned voter registration events, where an estimated 10,000 new voters were expected to register.

Gender Parity Is A World Away

According to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Gender Gap Report, the world will not achieve full gender parity for another 123 years if current rates of progress continue. The 2025 report shows 68.8 percent gender parity has been achieved across 148 economies, representing an improvement of just 0.4 percentage points over the past year. Additionally, the findings show that women remain concentrated in “lower-paying, people-centric industries” such as education and healthcare, and that although globally, women now outperform men at education levels, only 29.5 percent of tertiary-education senior managers are women. Perhaps it is unsurprising, then, that efforts against “women’s rights and gender policies” are alive worldwide; the state of the foreign feminist movement is detailed in a new report organized by the Feminist Foreign Policy Collaborative. “Well-funded anti-rights opposition movements are polarizing politics and sweeping elections around the globe” according to the report, with the renouncement of feminist foreign policies in countries such as Sweden, Germany, Argentina, and the Netherlands.

Young women are leaving the workforce…and the country, if they can

According to a recent Gallup poll, 40% of younger American women want to leave the country permanently. Approximately 2 in 5 American women and girls ages 15 to 44 say they would leave the United States permanently if they could, four times what it was in 2014. The rise includes both single and married women. What could be causing this? In June, the government reported that almost one million young people aged 16 to 24 are “not currently in employment, education or training,” or NEET. In total, the Office for National Statistics reports, there are now 450,000 young female “Neets” – the highest number recorded since 2016. It’s undeniable that the job market isn’t exactly welcoming right now; there are fewer jobs around, unemployment is rising, particularly for younger women, and we are now seeing that AI is starting to reduce the number of entry-level jobs. Mental health is also a huge factor. One in 10 Neets left employment over the past year due to mental health; more than one quarter say this has stopped them applying for jobs. Young women have “always been more likely than men to experience the more common mental health problems”, from anxiety to depression, says Dr Lynne Green, chief clinical officer at Kooth, a digital mental health support platform. And over the past decade or so, an overwhelming array of studies has concluded that these problems are only rising and rising in this demographic.

Inventors, Innovators & Changemakers

Across the country and around the world, women are pushing forward cultural, scientific, and political change – but they are also confronting long-standing barriers to recognition, opportunity, and equity. The recent launch of an off-broadway play called “Predictor,” written by Caitlin Kinnunen, tells the story of the first at-home pregnancy test. At the same time, a program in New Mexico is bringing women’s history out of the shadows by installing nearly a hundred roadside markers and developing a K-12 curriculum to highlight the overlooked contributions of women from New Mexico’s past. Meanwhile, at the COP30 summit in Belém, Brazil, Indigenous women leaders called for direct, simplified access to climate-finance mechanisms, asserting that “climate finance is a right, not a favour.”