Women are `in it to win it' in 2018, and beyond

The statistics are alarming: Of the 535 members of Congress, just 105 are women and of those — only 38 are women of color. Four in the Senate, 34 in the House.

At the State House, the numbers aren’t much better. Of our 200 state lawmakers, 52 are women and only a handful are women of color: two senators and three reps.

Long before the Women’s March on Washington galvanized hundreds of thousands of women to participate in an incredible show of our collective power, members of the nonpartisan National Women’s Political Caucus and the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus — both 46 years young — had been rolling up their sleeves and engaging in the daunting task of getting more women elected to political office.

In the months since the march on Washington, there’s been a significant surge in the number of women energized both nationally and locally to run for office, many for the first time. Working to provide the resources necessary to break through the political barriers that have kept women out of local and national seats of power has always been the caucus’ top priority.

Beginning today, hundreds of women will convene at the Back Bay Hilton to participate in the national political caucus’ biennial convention and take part in workshops on campaign training and diversity under the banner “Forging Ahead: In it to Win it.”

The Bay State caucus, under the leadership of Gail Jackson-Blount, its first African-American president, has already extended its reach into the upcoming municipal elections and endorsed more women than ever before.

And though the biggest prize — electing the nation’s first woman president — remains elusive, the NWPC, under the leadership of the incredible Donna Lent, together with caucuses across the country, should be applauded for their efforts, which helped contribute to 21 women in the U.S. Senate, including a record four women of color.

Pundits are speculating that freshman California Sen. Kamala Harris may be the next Democratic presidential candidate.

Before the convention wraps on Sunday, participants will hear from Attorney General Maura Healey, U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark, Tennessee state Sen. Sara Kyle, Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, Connecticut Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Gov. Charlie Baker will also make an appearance.

Then it’s on to making sure that women are in it to win it — in 2018 and beyond.