海角大神

Can mothers be lawmakers? Ohio senator asks

An Ohio politician is drawing ire for suggesting that being the mother of two young children makes his political opponent a less viable candidate. 

Jennifer Herold, a mother of two, is running for the 7th House district seat in the Ohio legislature. An occupational therapist, the Republican candidate has on her platform: mental health awareness and funding for schools.

But her opponent, state Sen. Tom Patton, is drawing attention to another element of her campaign. On a radio show last week, he emphasized the fact that Ms. Herold is a young mother.

鈥� is a 30-year-old, you know, mom, mother of two infants,鈥� Patton said on America鈥檚 Work Force radio show with Ed Ferenc.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if anybody explained to her you have to spend three nights a week in Columbus. So, how does that work out for you? I waited until I was 48, until my kids were raised, and at least adults, before we took the opportunity to try.鈥�

Mr. Patton, who told the radio host that he hasn鈥檛 faced any primary challenges since 2002, went on to call Ms. Herold by what some would consider a term of condescension 鈥� 鈥渟weetie.鈥�

"You know one of the things my opponent is running against is how hard she鈥檚 going to work on education,鈥� he went on to say, touting his accomplishment in gaining additional school funding. 鈥淎nd I want to tell her, 'Hey Sweetie, I just got 27 percent of the pie in just my district, which is nine times what should have been done."

In a written statement on Facebook, Herold addresses her opponent and defends her and her family鈥檚 decision to join the race. She calls his comments 鈥�.鈥�

鈥淲e realize the sacrifice that is involved in holding such a position,鈥� she wrote. 鈥淗owever, Tom Patton has crossed a line by trying to turn the fact that I am a mother of two children, into a negative campaign issue. It鈥檚 insulting for my opponent to suggest that motherhood is a liability. In fact, my experience as a mom is perhaps my greatest strength."

"Tom, only one man in my life is allowed to call me 'sweetie,'鈥� she continued. 鈥淔rom now on, I respectfully ask you to refer to me as Jen, Jennifer, Ms. Herold, or your opponent.鈥�

Herold highlights the fact that female lawmakers have children of all ages in the Ohio legislature. Two female House members, Reps. Christie Kuhns, (D) of Cincinnati, and Christina Hagan, (R) of Alliance, both gave birth this session. Ms. Hagan even took her 1-month-old daughter Josephine to the House chamber Wednesday.

Of course, many 鈥� if not, most 鈥� male lawmakers also run and serve for office as fathers, including Republican Gov. John Kasich. Herold questioned whether Patton would have said the same for a young father candidate.

On the national arena, more than a dozen women in Congress have school-age children. In the 2014 midterm elections, 12 young mothers ran for office 鈥� nine Democrats and three Republicans, .

Until recently, women tend to wait until their children are older to run for office. According to , women on average enter politics four years later than men, at age 51 compared to 47.

Kelly Dittmar, a professor of political science at Rutgers University, told Time magazine that the concern of women balancing work and life in politics .

鈥淲hat is interesting is to see how women use their motherhood as a credential for office holding, instead of an impediment or barrier to office holding, as it has often been historically framed,鈥� she said.

In response to Herold鈥檚 backlash, Patton said he did not intend to insult her, or young mothers.

"As a widower who raised five daughters, it was not my intention to suggest that a young mother couldn't serve ably in the legislature," he said. "I used a poor choice of words to express what I know first-hand 鈥� raising young children and working is tough. Millions of women do just that every day, including my own daughters. I would ask to be judged on my hard work and advocacy for working families. I sincerely apologize if my words were misplaced on this matter."

The two candidates will face off March 15. If Herold wins, she will face Democrat David Thurau in November. Being a state representative would be her first public office.

鈥淚 want to make a difference and bring light to some issues,鈥� Herold told the Royalton Post in November, when she announced her candidacy. 鈥淚鈥檓 hoping to bring a fresh perspective. Sometimes a fresh perspective isn鈥檛 a bad thing.