Creating New Politics - Licia Heath Is A Channel For More Female Representation

Licia Heath is the CEO of Women for Election and she’s on the show today to talk many things politics, women in politics and the future of women in politics. Despite being in a context where slowly slowly incrementalism at best seems to be the political program at the moment - from a middling 2035 emissions target to housing to gender violence to tax reform to indicating support for the theft of creative intellectual property, it can be difficult to remember that just six years ago the federal political landscape was radically different to what we see today. Licia’s theory of change for our political system lies in changing the individual faces of the people who sit at all three levels of government, and she’s here today to share much more about this.

When I first came across Women for Election and Licia, I was reminded about one of my favourite documentaries - Knock Down the House. That documentary, set in the now-utopian-level times of 2018 follows four women seeking Democratic Party pre-selection for their congressional district elections at the US midterms. The documentary goes behind the scenes in how grassroots campaigning and the creation of new power in communities is possible, away from the vested interests of existing politicians and a two party system that offered little to no chance of delivering much needed structural reform in many areas of our society and economy. I love the potential that new power is possible just by showing up, by getting involved and being active in and with others nearby - not the inaccessible over there toxicity politicians is easily portrayed and perceived as. With that in mind, I wanted to get Licia on, and this didn’t disappoint.

We cover the origins and evolution of Women for Election, the particular barriers and challenges different groups of women face in pursuing representation, the importance of civility and custodianship as virtues to help drive change, and Licia’s own remarkable transformation from 20 year finance professional to the ups and downs of re-making her career, future and identity. This episode has something for everyone, but what has stayed with me since is the vital role of just showing up, being involved and having the willingness to put your hand up and take on a role you never thought was possible, and what’s possible once you do accept that role.

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