As a 20-something and recent MSU alumna, Debbie Stabenow found her call to service in politics as many of her male counterparts found theirs in the U.S. military during the Vietnam War.

"It was the first time I really looked around and saw that my friends were impacted by the draft," she said. "I started looking around and paying attention more to government and politics."

And so at the age of 24, with no previous experience in government and no background in politics, the Michigan Democrat decided it was her time and her place wasn't in the kitchen.

But unfortunately that time came when few women were entering politics successfully.

Stabenow, initially involved in local health care issues, entered the race for Ingham County Board of Commissioners.

"The incumbent referred to me as 'that young broad running against him' - I always smile and say 'that young broad beat him,'" she said.

By going out and knocking on doors, Stabenow made a name for herself in local politics. She continued in local, state and federal government, setting an example for other women who also desired to serve the people.

"I feel like I've been at the front of the wave, in terms of women moving up through government, so I've see a lot of changes," she said.

Stabenow was more than just a "young broad" interested in making policy.

And more so-called broads are beating male incumbents, as women have a greater presence in Michigan politics today. In November 2002, Michigan became a state comprised of more female politicians than ever before. The state is represented by 36 female legislators - 25 hold seats in the state House and 11 in the Senate. In Washington, women represent Michigan in both the houses of Congress as well as President Bush's Cabinet.

With newly elected Gov. Jennifer Granholm, the mitten state's first female governor, and more female political leadership in both state houses and in federal government, Michigan is showing its receptiveness to both sexes in government.

Stereotypes and women's issues

Though women in the political arena have accomplished much, they continue to face age-old stereotypes.

"There's always an effort to stereotype women as being interested in only a narrow set of issues that are called 'women's issues' and the reality is, every issue is a women's issue," Stabenow said.

Women's issues are stereotyped as education, child care, health care, elderly care and domestic violence, Stabenow said. Where she sees the real problem is the misconception that these are the only issues women can represent appropriately.

"If I worked on a women's issue like domestic violence, or a children's issue, the press and my male colleagues could easily see me as being an expert," she said.

Working in the federal government, Stabenow said women in positions on the armed services committee or the foreign relations committee are rarely interviewed as experts.

"There's a real lack of understanding that women have great expertise in tense issues," Stabenow said.

While women might be more sensitive and might be drawn into these issues, politicians' interests depend on their backgrounds, not necessarily their genders, said state Rep. Fran Amos, R-Waterford.

"Just because women do a good job with so-called women's issues, doesn't mean they don't also excel on business, financial and planning committees," she said.

Female politicians might be directed to the stereotypical women's issues because many are faced with those issues in their daily lives, Amos said.

"Because of our nurturing nature, we are closer to those issues than (men) are - we add that dimension they don't have," she said.

State Sen. Patricia Birkholz agrees.

As the first Republican female speaker pro tem of the House, and the first female president pro tempore of the state Senate, Birkholz is an example of women continuing to make progress in government leadership.

"We can do just as good, if not better in any other committees - you name it, women can do it," the Saugatuk Republican said.

Family challenges

Women have to face different challenges than their male colleagues, state Rep. Dianne Byrum said, some of which stem from the traditional female role in the family.

Working in government can pose challenges to women raising families, as they might be forced to take time away from their families in order to make policy and serve constituents.

"Frequently, if you run for office, it is a lifestyle that takes you out of the home, sometimes for a week at a time - it's very difficult for women to do that if they are raising a family," the Onondaga Democrat said.

There are many women who choose not to put themselves in such a position, instead they might serve in office before they have children, or once their children are grown.

The large time and energy commitment required to be a politician made state Rep. Amos decide she would not run for office while she had young children.

"There's just not enough hours in the day to do both right," she said.

But Gov. Jennifer Granholm has no problems juggling family and political tasks, said Bill Ballenger, editor and publisher of a Lansing-based newsletter, Inside Michigan Politics.

"Granholm has children at home and it does not seem to have held her back," he said. "She had a child a year before she was elected attorney general.

"Her husband has shouldered the major child-rearing responsibilities - he is an example of a man who has kind of assumed the traditional female role."

On the job

Some of the toughest obstacles female politicians face are not strictly family oriented. Women might encounter difficulties raising campaign money and feeling left out by male colleagues.

Many of the male politicians are social together, excluding women in various aspects of political work, Amos said.

The problem is not men being social, Amos said, the problem arises when discussion and decisions are made away from the Capitol.

"You are drawn in later for a vote, but not for the planning," Amos said.

State Sen. Virg Bernero, D-Lansing, said though women are making progress, attitudes from the past still exist.

"Is there still chauvinism and still sexism? Sure is. But it's nothing like what it was," he said. "The ol' good-old boy network has been torn down."

Women in political positions are becoming role models for future female politicians, Bernero said.

"The message they send to daughters and my daughters is that there is no glass ceiling - us guys have to worry about the women, they're taking over," Bernero said.

But female politicians might find it harder to gain support because of the negative attitudes that sometimes go along with supporting female candidates, Amos said.

"Women don't get the same 'rah rah' support that men do," Amos said.

While the negativity toward women in political positions isn't as overt as it used to be, Birkholz said women still are not as well-accepted in the inner circles as their male counterparts.

Women generally do not have the same networking skills as men in any job field, though this demonstrates itself more in politics, Birkholz said.

Women tend to have a difficult time raising the amount of money it takes to campaign, she said.

Women also are not as assertive in asking for money specifically for themselves, Birkholz said, adding many women have an easier time asking for money for charities and community groups.

"It's a gender thing," she said. "People just tend not to write those donation checks as they do to men."

Negative Attention

As a female politician, state Rep. Dianne Byrum said she received negative reactions from people who still believe in old stereotypes.

"There are some people who have a pretty narrow view of society and the role women play in society," Byrum said.

As a young female representative, Gretchen Whitmer, D-East Lansing, said she had many negative reactions, which young males in her position did not receive.

Whitmer said the combination of her age and being female led people to believe she was younger and less experienced than her male colleagues.

"I have had a lot of colleagues in this new session ask me which representative I am a staffer for - I laugh it off. I don't take it too seriously," Whitmer said.

Since women became involved in state government, Ballenger said he has seen women reach nearly equal status to their male counterparts.

"Women are doing very well with men in the Legislature -they have reached parity or near parity," he said. "I don't think that the gender gap is a problem anymore."

Women might not reach the prominent roles that men do simply because there are fewer women in the pool of lawmakers to choose from, Ballenger said.

"It may not be a function of discrimination, but a fact that women, just by their numbers, do not have as much of a chance to gain higher positions," he said.

And Stabenow said not everyone has negative views of female politicians. The public always has been supportive of women in power.

"The public sees women as providing fresh, new voices and approaches," she said.

Improvement in the future

In order for female politicians to continue gaining strides, women have to continue running for office.

Stabenow and colleagues in the Women's Senate Network have been out recruiting women and helping them run for national office.

"It's a matter of having enough women at the local and state level who are willing to take that next step," Stabenow said.

Women have more support now, and it is crucial to have women be a strong part of government, she said.

"Better decisions get made when everybody is at the decision-making table, and for a long time, half the population wasn't sitting there," Stabenow said.

With Granholm representing Michigan as the state's first female governor, future female legislators might have someone to look up to.

"People see women working in jobs that perhaps were not thought of as women's positions, and they see we can do it - we knew it all along," Stabenow said.

Through decades of women working to make names for themselves in politics, they agree they have made many accomplishments that will provide for future "broads" to be recognized for the women they are.

"I do believe as women blaze the trail and hold positions of authority, whether it be in politics, business, or any other venue, it makes it easier for young women to follow," Byrum said.

Sarah Frank can be reached at franksa2@msu.edu.