It's certainly not an unwelcome challenge for advocates for gender equality that four or more women are running for the Democratic nomination for president in 2020. Looming over it all is persistent gender bias and the question of whether Americans are ready to elect a female president. A wait-and-see approach works for now, but groups that actively bolster female candidates could face pressure to align with specific campaigns as the primary goes on. Among that top tier of female candidates, Gillibrand is particularly vocal in invoking her gender as a driver of her campaign. Cecile Richards, who led Planned Parenthood for 12 years, predicted that the high-profile female Democratic candidates would push their male counterparts to work harder to appeal to female voters.

Source: ABC News January 19, 2019 07:07 UTC