The programming for our 2023 #WPLNSummit was built around the knowledge and skills that any woman on the trail or in office would need.

Our final large panel of the day was on voter outreach and community engagement, featuring the following leaders and experts:

• Arkansas Republican Party Communications Director Amber Crawford (@AmberRowlett1 on Twitter)

• Sara Marie Ridley from Majority Strategies (@SaraMarieK on Twitter)

• Former California congressional candidate Tamika Hamilton (@TamikaGHamilton on Twitter)

• Chris Lane from Cygnal (@ChrisLaneMA on Twitter)

The biggest takeaway from this panel?

This is women’s moment – and we should take advantage of it. 

Several of the panelists spoke about the fact that women are statistically more successful candidates than men and that attitudes toward men and women’s roles at home and in government have been shifting.

“Women, by math, are better candidates than men,” said Chris Lane, Director of Client Strategy at Cygnal. He noted that a higher percentage of women win their races than men, it’s just that more men run for office.

“We have to change how we communicate to women because we need them,” said Tamika Hamilton, who in 2022 ran to represent California’s 6th Congressional District. “We are missing the mark on courting them to be candidates.”

And the panelists highlighted key behaviors for any woman who wants to run for office, including building relationships and getting to know constituents; working hard; and making use of data.

“If you don’t know your people, then you shouldn’t be in the game,” said Tamika.

“If you aren’t making that emotional connection, you are doing yourself a disservice,” Chris added. “You need to be a storyteller because otherwise it’s just noise.”

“You have to hustle,” said Sara Marie Ridley, State Strategist at Majority Strategies and a WPLN National Impact Council member. “You can be up against all the money in the world and outwork them; you can also have all of the money in the world and get outworked.”

Tamika underscored the need for data, saying, “A lot of people don’t understand how the numbers really work, but the first thing that you do after hiring a campaign manager is make sure you have a solid data consultant.”

We know one thing: When it comes to women running for office, the numbers are on their side.

“Every time you run,” Sara Marie told the women in the audience, “you will get more of the vote.”

“Help the women out in your lives,” said Amber Crawford, Arkansas Republican Party Communications Director. “Encourage them, support their visions, stand up and be there for the women.”

Stay tuned for more details, photos, and posts from our 2023 #WPLNSummit!

To see even more photos from the weekend, click here for our Facebook group. (If you're not a member of our Facebook group, click here to join!) 

Want to follow up with our speakers? Here’s a list of our panels, the speakers, and their social media information:

• Economic and community development, featuring the following leaders and experts:

• Former California Assemblywoman Catharine Baker (@CBakerAD16 on Twitter)

• San Marcos Mayor Rebecca Jones (@RebeccaJ516 on Twitter)

• Yorba Linda Mayor Pro Tem Tara Campbell (@tarapcampbell on Twitter)

• Darian Z. Harris from Advantage Capital (Darian’s LinkedIn profile)

• Diversity on the trail, featuring the following leaders and experts:

• WPLN President Larissa Martinez (@LMart939 on Twitter)

• Monet Bacs from the LIBRE Initiative (@MonetBacs on Twitter)

• Nikita Pearson (@MsNikitaPearson on Twitter)

• Lorenda Overman from the American Farm Bureau Federation

• Angel Fimbres Barcelo from Big Fish Recruiting (@AngelFBarcelo on Twitter)

• Voter outreach and community engagement, featuring the following leaders and experts:

• Arkansas Republican Party Communications Director Amber Crawford (@AmberRowlett1 on Twitter)

• Sara Marie Ridley from Majority Strategies (@SaraMarieK on Twitter)

• Former California congressional candidate Tamika Hamilton (@TamikaGHamilton on Twitter)

• Chris Lane from Cygnal (@ChrisLaneMA on Twitter)

We also offered more intimate panels on two important issues:

• The future of the workforce, featuring

  • Cheryl Jaeger from Crossroads Strategies (Cheryl’s LinkedIn profile)

  • Pennsylvania Representative Kristin Marcell, also of HBW Resources (Kristin’s LinkedIn profile)

  • Rachel Michelin from California Retailers Association (@RachelEMichelin on Twitter)

  • WPLN Board Member Matt Ralston, from Troutman Pepper Strategies (@MD_Ralston on Twitter)

• Secure and sustainable energy solutions, featuring

  • WPLN Board Chair Joel Noyes, from Hess Corporation (@JPNoyes on Twitter)

  • Emily Haggstrom from HBW Resources (@emilyhaggstrom on Twitter)

  • Kristin Westmoreland from American Petroleum Institute (@Kangus10 on Twitter)

  • Molly Determan from Energy and Technology Workforce (@molly_smart on Twitter)

And our skills building workshops centered around 3 skills critical for any candidate or lawmaker:

• Speaking with confidence, led by Jenifer Sarver from Sarver Strategies (@utsarver on Twitter)

• Building your brand, led by Madeline Fetterly of Be the Brand (@m_fetterly on Twitter)

• Fundraising, led by June Cutter of Highland Illuminate (@junecutter on Twitter)

In addition, Maria Giannopoulos (@greekmaria) and Erica Arbetter (@ThatsErica) from Google gave a presentation on the importance of digital security (“Keeping Yourself Secure with Google”).

Thank you to our 2023 #WPLNSummit sponsors!

Lastly, have questions about our national summit? Learn more here.