Women’s History Month is observed every March to honor the leaders, organizers, and advocates who have advanced equality and helped define American democracy. It is also an opportunity to look ahead and recognize the continued influence women have in today’s political landscape. Women participate in elections at high rates, shape civic conversations, and play a decisive role in competitive races.
At DSPolitical, that commitment informs how we show up. We partner with leaders and campaigns across the country, and our 2024 Election Recap highlights the women we were honored to support as they built momentum and secured victories up and down the ballot.
Women Continue to Drive Electoral Outcomes
For decades, participation levels among women have remained high, and they consistently make up a larger share of the registered electorate. According to the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP), women are more likely to be registered to vote nationwide, and in recent years, there have typically been about 10 million more women registered than men. That registration gap is reflected in turnout. The U.S. Census Bureau’s Voting and Registration Supplement (Table A-1) shows that women have turned out at increased levels of participation in presidential elections since 1980. Cycle after cycle, women comprise a larger share of voters overall.
In practical terms, sustained participation combined with shifts in support among women voters can decisively influence election outcomes. In the 2025 gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia, expanded gender gaps and stronger performance among women voters compared to prior Democratic nominees fueled clear victories. These results reinforce a consistent electoral pattern: because women make up a larger share of the electorate, shifts in their support can meaningfully shape statewide outcomes.
Priorities Reflect Lived Experiences
Understanding turnout is only part of the equation. It is also essential to understand what drives engagement. To better understand how major political and policy shifts were reshaping the electorate, KFF resurveyed women ahead of the 2024 November election. Their updated Survey of Women Voters found a noticeably shifted female electorate, reflecting how economic pressures, threats to democratic institutions, and reproductive rights were influencing priorities.
According to KFF, 36% of women identified inflation and the cost of living as one of the most important issues facing the country. Twenty-four percent cited threats to democracy, and 13% named reproductive rights as their top issue. These are not isolated policy preferences. They are interconnected concerns rooted in lived experience. Economic strain affects childcare decisions, caregiving responsibilities, and long-term financial security. Healthcare affordability intersects with reproductive autonomy and family planning. Concerns about democracy reflect broader anxieties about stability, safety, and institutional trust.
For campaigns, this interconnectedness matters. Voters are not responding to single-issue appeals in isolation. They are evaluating candidates based on how policies fit into the full context of their lives.
Protecting Rights and Engaging Authentically
The stakes of these priorities extend beyond messaging; they define the policy environment in which women live and participate politically. The 2025 victories of Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey and Abigail Spanberger in Virginia reinforced how central women are to modern electoral coalitions. At the same time, the Trump administration and aligned conservative leaders have advanced governing frameworks that would significantly restructure federal authority and longstanding civil rights protections.
Project 2025 proposes expanding executive power while rolling back safeguards tied to reproductive healthcare, workplace standards, and federal benefit programs. It includes restricting medication abortion access, narrowing emergency reproductive care protections, weakening labor and overtime enforcement, scaling back Affordable Care Act (ACA) coverage protections, and limiting the authority of agencies that prevent workplace discrimination. These changes would fundamentally alter the economic and healthcare systems that support women’s financial security and overall well-being. Policies that increase economic strain or restrict healthcare access influence civic engagement and political decision-making.
That reality carries direct electoral implications. Policy choices shape day-to-day conditions, which in turn influence whether participation feels accessible and sustainable. When economic security, healthcare access, and workplace protections are stable, civic engagement is easier to maintain; when they are disrupted, barriers to participation can grow. Women remain foundational to electoral success, and reinforcing the conditions that support their stability and autonomy strengthens long-term engagement. Campaigns must pair that understanding with outreach strategies that reflect where and how women voters are engaging in today’s evolving media landscape.
That landscape is increasingly shaped by streaming. According to the Women Voters report by Comcast Advertising, women spend roughly 29% of their total TV viewing time with streaming, and nearly half of those households would not be reached by linear television alone. Streaming growth is especially pronounced among key segments: usage among women over 35 increased 7% in a single year, and ad-supported video on demand grew 37% year over year among women ages 18–34. Streaming becomes a primary way many women access news, entertainment, and political content. Reaching voters today requires an intentional streaming strategy across CTV, free ad-supported streaming television (FAST), and other ad-supported environments where engagement continues to grow — an approach detailed in our Win the Streaming Majority ebook.
We also explore these shifts in more detail in Digital Trends for 2026, which outlines why CTV and FAST are necessary in your 2026 strategy.
The Enduring Impact of Women
Women’s History Month is a reminder that history is still being written. Women continue to participate in elections with sustained engagement and play a defining role in shaping political outcomes. Their engagement reflects a wide range of experiences and priorities, from economic security to healthcare to the strength of democratic institutions. Celebrating Women’s History Month means acknowledging both progress and presence. Women are not only part of the story of American democracy. They are central to its present and its future.