In 2012 Election, It Was Ladies' Night Across America | Record Number of Mostly Democratic Women Senators Arrive in DC

(L)Karim Sadli | V Magazine #80 Winter 2012 | What’s Haute This Season

(R)Hedvig Palm, Melodie Monrose, Madelen De La Motte, Zhu Lin & Hanna Fridh | Boe Marion | Rodeo Fall 2012 | On The Verge

(Top)Leighton Meester | Yu Tsai | Flaunt November 2012 | Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit

(L)Irina Lazareanu | Max Abadian | Dress to Kill Fall 2012 | ‘Autumn Romance’

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From left, Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R), Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D), Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D) and Rep. Ann Kuster (D) will make up an all-female congressional delegation in New Hampshire.New Hampsire is the first state to send an all-female delegation to Congress: Republican senator Kelly Ayotte and Democrat Senator Jeanne Shaheen, accompanied by Democrats Rep. Carol Shea-Porter and Rep. Ann Kuster.

New Hampshire also elected Maggie Hassan as the only Democrat woman governor. The race pitted women’s and minority rights advocate Hassan against social conservative Republican Ovide Lamontagne.

In a banner night for women, Democrat Elizabeth Warren unseated Independent — usually voting Republican Scott Brown — in Massachusetts. Brown won Ted Kennedy’s seat in a special election after the senator’s death of brain cancer.

Wisconsin sent the first openly-gay woman to the Senate, Democrat Tammy Baldwin. Baldwin has been one of four openly gay House members. Baldwin defeated former Bush cabinet head Tommy Thompson. Other races with women include:

Women Winners

Claire McCaskill (D-MO) retained Senate seat against “legitimate rape” Todd Akin.

Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) in Senate bid.

Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) in Senate bid.

Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) Retained Senate seat.

Deb Fischer (R-Neb) Taking Senate seat vacated by Democrat Ben Nelson.

Dianne Feinstein (D-Ca) re-elected to Senate.

Amy Klobuchar (D-Mn) retained her Senate seat.

Michele Bachmann (R-Minn) narrowly retained House seat.

Tammy Duckworth (D-Il) elected to House

Women Losers

Linda McMahon (R-Ct) in bid for Senate

Shelley Berkley (D-Nev) in bid for Senate

Heather Wilson (R-NM) in bid for Senate

Linda Lingle (R-Hawaii) in Senate bid

Cynthia Dill (D-Me) in Senate bid. Dill lost to popular Independent Angus King, who is expected to caucus with Democrats.

Mia Love (R-Ut) failed in her bid to become the GOP’s first black congresswoman.

Mary Bono Mack (R-Ca) lost her House seat.

Voters Speak

Mitt Romney won the white vote, 58 to 40 percent, making it the biggest lead for a Republican since 1988.

White women delivered the election to Obama. If white women had stayed in Romney’s camp, swing states in Ohio, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, and Virginia — although NH voters seemed determined to launch an estrogen lovefest.

Instead, Obama led among women by 12 points, nearly identical to his lead among women four years ago. For all the stories ab out white women abandoning Obama after the first debate, it didn’t happen. 

Romney’s most reliant bloc the whole campaign was white men. He led by 25 points with them today. But in 1976, white men were 46 percent of voters. Today they’re at a new low, 34 percent.

In Congressional races, Elizabeth Warren beat Scott Brown, thanks to an 18-point lead among women voters. Women went for Tammy Baldwin in Wisconsin by 14 points. Incumbent Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar defeated opponent Kurt Bills with a mind-boggling 44-point lead with women.

As Lauren Sandler reported at New York Magazine’s The Cut earlier this week, female leaders on the Hill tend to fight harder on issues that female voters care about. The influx of women will likely press the Senate’s Democratic majority to move left.

Ladies, Tomorrow's Election Day and YOU Will Decide Who Is In Charge of Your Body | Dear Walmart Moms #4

Hi Anne: I am so humbled that you thought of me to include in your conversations with your “Walmart Moms” readership. If I had one thing I would want to say to them i would want to dispel their notions that I have no respect for “LIFE”. Nothing could be further from the truth.

I consider childbirth to be one of the most amazing experience we as humans beings can witness; and it is because I feel this way that I accept the “label” PRO-CHOICE. The fact IS I would much prefer to be “labeled” and I do self identify as “pro-autonomous” when it comes to the serious matter of bringing another human being into the world.

Motherhood Is A Huge Responsibility

As a woman, I am the one who is charged with the biological responsibility of giving birth and undertaking years of nurturing and protecting that child until they attain their inherent birthright, which is their own sense of autonomy. This responsibility - I take so seriously – that I would not seek the counsel of any other person to make this decision for me.

Motherhood is a decision I must make on my own – with no intervention from government, religion or family and without the threat of investigation, prosecution jail. Such coercion would feel like torture to me. and as a mater of fact: I believe that autonomy is a fundamental universal human right and the first pillar of Freedom.

Bodily Autonomy & the UN Convention on Torture

In a recent conversation online I was informed about the ruling affirming the right to bodily autonomy in McFall v. Shimp. The US Senate ratified the UN Convention on Torture in 1994. The legal language in Article 1 Sec 9 of the UN Convention on Torture defines torture as:

“The intentional infliction of severe mental or physical pain or suffering by, or with the consent of, state authorities for a specific purpose. Methods of torture include rape, sexual assault, and forced pregnancy/childbirth.”

Are Republicans Violatating Women’s Legal Right to Bodily Autonomy?

In my view, the over 1100 pieces of legislation, some extending “personhood” at the moment of conception, others mandating doctors to force a woman to listen to the heartbeat with a vaginal probe, while they read to her and force her to look at the fetus may violate the UN Convention on Torture. The “personhood” legislation introduced in Congress to outlaw contraception and criminalize abortion in every situation except “legitimate rape” and incest fits into this definition of Torture. Indeed, even the mention of such legislation - feel like torture to my American-ness.

I would never wish this fate on any American woman, even if we do not share the same political affiliations. I am sure NO American woman wants to see another in bondage. And the mounting assault perpetrated by Republicans on the rights of American women feels more like the shackles of bondage as every day goes by.

Desiree Jordan
Founder Unite Women New York
UniteWomenNY.org

Huckabee Calls On Christians Voters To Face Test of Fire | Romney Reasserts Opposition to Abortion Rights

Mitt Romney gets really angry at a Des Moines radio show, who wants to be sure that he is pro-life. You must watch the entire interview, which is truly interesting.

French Roast News

Anne is reading …

Ryan, Quiet for Now, Is Said to Be Planning for an Active Role, writes the New York Times

The prospect of a deeply engaged vice president was described in interviews with campaign aides, close House colleagues and the few times Mr. Ryan has discussed his potential future job. Asked by a reporter last month if he expected the kind of broad responsibility for the economy that Mr. Cheney held for national security — as an aide suggested — Mr. Ryan said, “I do.”

“A large reason he was chosen was to help Romney govern,” an adviser to the campaign said. “Paul’s going to focus on being a partner.”

Obama’s Women Supporters and the ‘Marriage Gap’ Wild Card The Daily Beast

That is the marriage gap at work, says Page Gardner, founder of the Voter Participation Center. This year’s tight race suggests that suburban women reassured by Romney in the debates have gone home to the GOP, but that Obama still has 63-64 percent support among unmarried women.

Romney Recuits Glenn Beck

Glenn Beck, who is also a Mormon, has emerged as a previously skeptical but now strong supporter of Mitt Romney, writes the New York Times.

Mostly Mr. Beck has helped Mr. Romney by directly addressing his devout Mormon faith, something the candidate himself rarely does. “I believe Mr. Romney prays on his knees every day,” Mr. Beck said recently on his radio program. “I believe he is being guided.” He has also said that a Romney victory would be “a sign from God.”

Last week the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life released trends in voter preferences among religious groups. As expected, Romney enjoys a commanding lead among white evangelical voters in the group of 1,678 registered voters surveyed. Catholic white voters are more likely to be split between the two candidates.

Maggie Hassan Presses Flesh

New Hampsire could elect the nation’s only Democratic woman governorDemocrat Maggie Hassan, former state Senate majority leader in New Hampshire was ousted in the Tea Party takeover of 2010. If elected governor of New Hampsire, she would be the nation’s only pro-choice female governor. Democrats Christine Gregoire in Washington and Bev Perdue in North Carolina are stepping down; Republicans Nikki Haley in South Carolina, Susana Martinez in New Mexico, Mary Fallin in Oklahoma, and Jan Brewer in Arizona are all opposed to women’s health reproductive rights.

The Daily Beast reports that Maggie Hassan is running “ahead by a nose” in a state that’s “leaning toward Obama” but in which Romney has deep roots with his home in Wolfeboro.

Hassan is a mother of two children — one of them with cerebral palsy, a lawyer, and wife of Tom Hassan, who is headmaster at the exclusive Phillips Exeter Academy.