Matriots work to elect women

A trip to the Women’s March on Washington inspired the formation of the Matriots, a new nonpartisan Ohio political action committee.

The PAC, whose goal is to get more women into elected offices, has raised more than half a million dollars since their inception earlier this year.

“Our mission is to elect more women to office in Ohio, regardless of party affiliation, who support an economy in which women can thrive in and prosper,” said Sally Crane Cox, Matriots chairwoman and treasurer.

A group of six central Ohio women, including Cox, attended January’s march in the nation’s capital the day after President Donald Trump was inaugurated. Hundreds of thousands of women gathered in Washington D.C., to protest the first full day of Trump’s presidency.

“We came away incredibly uplifted and hopeful about the possibility of creating a new form of governing that would be female-inspired, women led,” Cox said.

Rachel Escusa, Matriots’ communications committee chairwoman, echoed Cox’s sentiments.

“I think for a lot of people like me who may have been active as a volunteer or going to the Women’s March, this was a way to turn that activism and that energy you came back with into action,” Escusa said.

The PAC filed in May and started raising money on the Fourth of July. Leaders hoped to raise $400,000 before the end of the year, a goal they achieved within a few months, Cox said.

“I think it speaks to the hunger of women to find a voice in our current political climate,” said Virginia Barney, a Matriots founding member.

The Matriots plan to endorse women who embrace their values, which include protecting women’s rights, protecting women’s reproductive rights and striving for equity. They plan to endorse candidates running for statewide office, the General Assembly and local office, Cox said

“Our society as a whole will benefit from ensuring that women achieve economic stability,” Cox said.

“If you look at what’s happening not only locally but nationally, the system’s broke and we got to get individuals into those positions who can make policy changes,” said Trudy Bartley, vice chairwoman of the group.

While the Matriots are not part of a national organization, several new women’s candidate organizations across the country share the same goal: to get more females elected.

Looking ahead to next year, the PAC will launch an 88-women campaign to identify a Matriot in every Ohio county, Cox said.

“One of the things that we heard loud and clear in the last general election was that people in the rural areas are not feeling heard,” Cox said.