A Gender Insurgency In Politics

Democrats have several other challengers in addition to the races already mentioned. Among the potential winners are Lois Murphy, running again after a narrow loss in 2004 in Pennsylvania; Tammy Duckworth, a wounded Iraq war veteran running for an open seat in Illinois; Diane Farrell in Connecticut; Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona; Darcy Burner in Washington; Kirsten Gillibrand in New York and Christine Jennings in Florida. Add Wetterling in Minnesota, Patricia Madrid in New Mexico and Mary Jo Kilroy in Ohio, and it is a formidable lineup of talent, boosting the Democrats' chances of gaining control of the House.

Backing these candidates is a grass-roots effort to draw more women to the polls. A number of groups, both left and right, are engaged in the campaigns. I bumped into one unusual program, sponsored by the AFL-CIO last week, called "Stirring the Pot." Small groups of women, half a dozen to two dozen, met on Tuesday evening for living-room conversations about health care, education and job security and to encourage each other to vote.

I talked to Monique Schmittou, one of 20 women who met for a potluck supper in Canton, Mich. A single mother who has a teenage daughter and cares for an elderly mother, Schmittou recently was laid off from an auto-parts company for which she had worked 10 years.

Now facing the loss of her health insurance, she joined others in discussing what she calls "a crisis" for many in her community. Before they broke up, they addressed about 250 cards to other Canton women, urging them to vote next month.

It may be that women like these will give the men in power a needed kick in the pants -- to get them moving on the real issues.

davidbroder@washpost.com