Issue Brief Topic pt. 2

Addressing Exigence, Rhetorical Situation and Audience

Exigence can be defined as the urgency, importance, timeliness, or usefulness of a subject, thus, I believe this topic fits the criteria. As I addressed in my previous post, substantial gains have been made by women in politics in very recent history (first female vice president and record breaking number of women in both chambers in 2020). The rhetorical situation created by Vice President Harris’ swearing in and the 2020 election results set the stage for increased action for women. It is incredibly essential, then, that the fight for political parity is not overlooked. Over the past century, gender equality in politics has been slow. In other words, the fight is long from over. Thus, tangible change is necessary to increase political parity in the United States.

In my issue brief, I plan to address the shocking lack of women in politics specifically in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. I will propose three key solutions to increase political parity in our state: changing local/state campaign finance reform (systemic change), improving work/family policies (systemic change), and encouraging state parties to set quotas for candidates (self-administered, voluntary mandates via capacity builders). These approaches address disparities at the local and state level, by targeting state legislatures and both political parties within the state. Narrowing my issue brief from a national problem to a state problem allows me to tailor my argument to a state that needs more attention than others regarding political parity.