Mentoring
Mentoring candidates from different
backgrounds can serve to diversify a party’s membership and even the playing
field for promotion within internal party processes. Some parties have formed
mentoring networks to counteract intersectionality. In the United States and
Australia, EMILY’s list has been a useful tool for mobilizing financial support
and providing mentoring strategies for potential women candidates. In
Australia, the Australian Labor Party established a networking group to address
the lack of female representation in leadership positions within the party and
within Australian state and federal parliaments. Candidates endorsed by EMILY’s
List are mentored by experienced current or former women MPs, unionists, or
community campaigners. The mentors give the candidates practical and personal
support during their election campaign.[i]
Similar activities could focus on young women across party lines.
Leadership development and training
Among formal political organizations,
such as parties and parliaments, internal mechanisms, rules, and procedures do
not favor the inclusion of youth.
