helly Simonds ’91 remembers her grandmother, who was born in 1899, telling her about the fight for women’s rights.

“She was always a trailblazer and bragged to me about riding a bicycle and wearing pants,” she says. “I knew from her that voting was something that women had to fight for — that she had to fight for — and now it’s really come full circle for me as a new legislator.”

Simonds gained national attention after losing her first run for the Virginia House of Delegates in 2017, when her opponent’s name was drawn out of a bowl to break a tie in the balloting. The former Spanish teacher ran again and won in 2019 — coincidentally, the same year Eileen Filler-Corn became the first woman elected speaker in the 401-year history of the Virginia House.

Firsts like these are a sign both of the progress women have made since gaining the right to vote a century ago and what has so far remained out of reach.

A record number of women were elected to Congress in 2018 and, largely because of that, a record number of women are now serving in Congress. Also, mainly because of the 2018 elections, a record number of women are now serving in state legislatures across the country.

On the other hand, it took nearly 100 years for a woman to be elected speaker of the House (Nancy Pelosi, the current speaker, in 2007). Of course, the country has not yet elected a woman president, though Kamala Harris is now the third female vice presidential candidate for a major party.

As the nation marked the centennial of the 19th Amendment becoming law on Aug. 18, there was much to be celebrated but also more to be gained.

“I would say to anybody who’s interested in getting started in politics, you do need perseverance, because many times you don’t win the first time you run, and women need to see the long game, that you’ve got to stick with it,” says Simonds, a Democrat.

It might be impossible for young women casting their first electoral ballots to fathom that women in America didn’t always have the right to vote. But even after that right was won, change was only gradual.

In the early years after adoption of the 19th Amendment, men still had inordinate power, says Judith Wagner M’71, the mayor of Lewisburg, Pa.

“Many women, much of the time, had to do what men said and vote the way a man told her to vote, even after the right to vote was given. So, it is a process; it wasn’t just a line in the sand,” Wagner says.

Driven by a Desire to Serve

Wagner and the other Bucknell alumnae featured here say a desire to serve ultimately led them to run for office, even if, for most of their lives, they didn’t intend to be politicians.

A school teacher and counselor, Wagner jumped into politics after fighting unsuccessfully to persuade the Lewisburg Borough Council not to tear down a building that she believed would have been perfect for borough offices. The fourth-generation Lewisburger won election to the council in 1996 as a Republican. Six years later, after the sudden death of the mayor, her fellow council members appointed her to the post. She has served as Lewisburg’s first female mayor ever since.

Elected to represent Philadelphia in the state House of Representatives in 2018, Elizabeth Fiedler ’02 was, as a girl, told by her parents, both teachers, that not every American always had the right to vote. And that it was important, as a voter or office holder, to show compassion when serving the public.

“They both really talked a lot about civic responsibility and about service — those were things that were instilled in me at a very young age, along with compassion for other human beings,” Fiedler says. “A lot of people are really struggling in this world, and it’s not because of a fault. Many people work really, really hard and go to work every day, and they’re underpaid and are not as valued by our society as they should be as human beings. So they struggle.”

Before entering politics, Fiedler, an international relations and French major at Bucknell, was a public-radio journalist. As a reporter, Fiedler says, “I loved nerding out on legislation,” but she wanted to be part of making it and helping people more directly.

A desire to preserve open space, nature and wildlife led Dottie Fuetterer Reynolds ’58 to run in 1995 for the council in Barnegat Light, on the Jersey shore. She had been active for decades with county Republican committees.

“You can’t always just leave things for the other guy to do,” says Reynolds, a retired cancer research assistant and paralegal. “I thought, it’s time to get involved and be a voice for the people who want to keep the character, the affordability and the quality of life that I knew and loved here.”

Reynolds now serves with Mary Ellen Foley ’84, who was first elected to the council in 2017 as a Republican. Foley owns a company that demagnetizes oil and gas pipelines so that they can be repaired. Her aim in running for office was to provide business sense and fiscal discipline to the borough.

“I felt I could bring a little bit of the business side of the community to politics and not take things for granted,” Foley says. “There are a lot of politicians that just do things because that’s the way they [politicians] say they [should] do it. I don’t work that way. I try and think through things.”

How Bucknell Helped

Foley said her time at Bucknell as an electrical engineering major helped her be an independent thinker on the council.

“What I loved about Bucknell wasn’t only the practical experience; it was theoretical experience,” she recalls. “You learned to think, and you learned to apply the knowledge you gained. Bucknell taught me how to think through things — to understand and assess them, which leads you to make a better decision.”

Simonds, the anthropology and international relations major now serving in the Virginia House, also regards her Bucknell experience, particularly her study of history, as foundational.

“That history included the struggles of minorities, women and Indigenous people who constantly had to fight for their civil rights, over and over again. Having a civil society is something each generation has to affirm and protect,” she says.

“I think it took attending Bucknell to really understand that freedom isn’t free — that you’ve got to continually fight for your rights and participate to maintain democracy,” she says. “I think college is a really important time to place yourself outside of your hometown and your family and see where you fit in in the bigger picture of our democracy.”

Reynolds, a biology major, credits being president of a sorority and manager of the women’s glee club as early experiences that helped her become a good political leader. “It provided me with the background to be more confident, problem-solve and be more successful,” she says.

Practical Accomplishments

Each woman can claim tangible accomplishments in office.

On the Barnegat Light council, Reynolds helped increase recreational opportunities in her borough, create a dog park, open an animal shelter and add walkways for easier beach access.

“As I gained experience, I learned how to more effectively work with fellow borough council members and consider all sides of an issue before thoughtfully coming to a decision,” she says. “Most importantly, as a patriotic American who loves her country, I realize more and more the importance we all have in protecting the values and ideals of what has evolved into the best country in the world.”

Wagner helped Lewisburg cross the finish line on what she describes as a 30-year process to create a regional police department, which she says has saved money and made it easier to provide 24/7 police coverage. That occurred in 2012, when the Lewisburg Police Department merged with the East Buffalo Township Police.

Simonds helped pass a state law banning offshore drilling in Virginia, which she regards as “the epitome of profits over people and short-term gain over the long-term protection of our natural resources.”

Fiedler, meanwhile, points to how she has helped her constituents in South Philadelphia deal with struggles that have only intensified due to COVID-19.

“We have helped a lot of people navigate the unemployment system — many, but not all, for the first time,” Fiedler explains. “It’s been a real privilege for my office and me to have people reach out during some of the hardest moments that they’ve had — maybe in their lives — and be able to assist them so that they continue to pay their rent and their mortgage, so that they can have food,” she adds.

Succeeding In a Male-dominated Field

Reynolds said that while politics is still traditionally dominated by men, “women are now more respected and more influential in leadership roles than when I first became active in politics. A mutual respect between the men and women on our borough council and willingness to consider the views and ideas we each voice has made me more capable of being successful in my role,” she says.

Simonds credits her success as a woman in public office to community engagement. “Women are often better at building relationships and servant leadership, but it takes years of ‘showing up’ to do it. I have taken the time to build relationships by attending the church breakfast, the Rotary Club lunch, volunteering to serve on the board of a nonprofit, helping other candidates and joining groups like the NAACP.”

Foley says she has never approached her role as gender related. “I felt I had something to offer to improve the town,” she says. Yet, when she ran for office, “It was a big step. I heard the voices of many in my head saying, ‘This is a man’s job.’ I took the leap and have had wonderful opportunities.”

More Progress Needed

The alumnae say women need to look first to themselves to one day reach parity in terms of holding political office.

“Many of us have had it sort of drilled into our minds that leaders are men — because of society, because of culture, what we see on TV — this image of who can be an elected official,” Simonds says. “Does that person wear a suit? Is that person a man?

“I think some of this is work that we each need to do — thinking about what’s possible, thinking about what’s important to us when it comes to our elected officials,” she continues. “Is it important what they look like? Is their gender important? Or are we more concerned that they share our values and will really fight for what we believe? Will they fight for us in public spaces and also behind closed doors.”

Foley hopes that, like her, more women will discover fulfillment through political pursuits.

“I never would have expected myself to get involved in politics, but I love it,” she says. “I love the fact that I can make a difference, and I love the fact that people appreciate that I can make the difference. I just hope that other women out there would perhaps think about it because it is very rewarding. But you have to be willing to not just agree with the status quo. You have to try and make a difference.”

Younger women have more opportunities now than in decades past, according to Wagner.

“I cannot imagine a time when women did not have the right to vote,” she says. “The young women now who are working in politics believe they have the right to have a public office and that they are equally qualified — in some cases, more qualified — than men to do a great job for their communities, their regions, states and nations.

“I think that the time is coming when we’re going to see those things come to fruition, with women in high public office,” Wagner adds. “The women now don’t have the baggage that women in my generation have of thinking, ‘You can’t compete with a man.’ I think things are moving along quite nicely.”