Republican leaders met Thursday to continue its discussion on the party’s messaging and outreach strategy to a key group heading into a crucial midterm election year: women.
During a panel introducing the party’s “rising stars” moderated by RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, Karin Agness, founder and president of the Network of enlightened Women (NeW), spoke on the GOP’s need to reach out to young women on college campuses who might not feel comfortable expressing their views in organizations with a more “radical, feminist perspective.”
Agness shared her experience in promoting conservative values on progressive college campuses, and encouraged the audience and fellow conservative leaders to provide an alternative for young women who did not agree with the Democratic Party’s platform.
She also emphasized that Republicans should be talking about a variety of issues that women truly care about, and use new technology and local news outlets to “meet them where they are.”
“Women aren’t a unified voting bloc that’s going to vote liberal every time,” Agness said.
At a panel later Thursday afternoon about the importance of women in the Republican Party, Washington Times opinion editor Emily Miller suggested Republicans needed to flip the rhetoric around about the existence of a “war” on women. “Do any of us in here feel like we’re in a ‘war’?” Miller asked.
But while Republicans continue their three-day meeting in Boston to address how the GOP can shape the nation’s future, state officials are still pushing legislation to restrict abortion rights. In Ohio, State Rep. Lynn Wachtmann confirmed to the Associated Press Thursday that she planned to reintroduce a bill that would ban abortion after the first fetal heartbeat is detected. Earlier this summer, both Texas and North Carolina also passed legislation that restricts abortion rights.
