Did you know that the majority of Pennsylvania voters are women?

This trend has stayed steady for years, reinforced by a surge in participation amongst women following the Dobbs decision in 2022.

Pennsylvania women are not just voting for our leaders – they are being elected as leaders at historic levels.

The latest installment of the Voices of Reason podcast centered around women in politics.

Broad + Liberty’s own Beth Ann Rosica hosted the podcast’s roundtable segment featuring four women who are making significant impacts as political leaders in their communities.

Participants shared their experiences running for local office and discussed the challenges of being a woman in politics.

“Because women are traditionally the caretakers of the family, the support that’s required to run for office and to be present in Harrisburg is not traditionally there,” said Tasliym Morales, School Board Member for the Chester Upland School District.

Morales continued, “… that creates a big difference in the amount of women who feel like they can run. Not because they don’t want to, but because they think ‘am I going to be able to do it and be successful?’”

“School advocacy was the platform that got me involved,” said Stacey Whomsley, School Director for the West Chester Area School District.

“And I was diminished – cast aside by members of my community both male and female because I ‘didn’t want to be bothered’ with my children at home – which couldn’t have been further from the truth,” Whomsley emphasized, noting that she got involved to advocate for her children in school.

“So I do think there is still some societal bias against why women do get involved when they do get involved,” Whomsley concluded.

Additional questions were posed to the participants – are women more likely to support female candidates over male candidates? What are the issues that Pennsylvania women care most about going into this next election?

For more of the roundtable discussion, and exclusive interviews with Treasurer of the Commonwealth Stacy Garrity and her Democratic challenger Erin McClelland, tune into the sixth installment of Voices of Reason, available now on YouTube and all podcast streaming platforms.

“I got a message to Donald Trump and all his negativity and his whining,” he told MSNBC’s Jen Psaki. “Stop shit-talking America. This is the greatest country on Earth, and it’s time that we all start acting like it.”

Trump has repeatedly slammed America, earlier this year saying “in many ways we’re living in hell right now.”

But Shapiro said that’s not the reality of life in America today ― and voters in his swing state know it.

“I think they want to be led by someone who is honest and decent ― someone who’s actually on their side, like Joe Biden,” he said. “And all they hear from Donald Trump is a whole bunch of whining about this country. I think Donald Trump’s gotta quit whining.”

Shapiro also warned that Trump is out for revenge as he seeks a return to the White House.

“The idea that he would be put in charge of the justice system and have people surrounding him that were out just trying to get his perceived enemies should scare all Americans,” he said. “It’s another example of the kind of chaos that he would inflict on our country if he’s given the opportunity to lead this nation again.”

Check out the full interview below:

The measure also would impose a range of new regulations on cyber-charter schools, including public disclosure requirements for budgets, taxes and reports to the state Education Department. Public schools’ payments per student to cyber-charter schools would be capped at $8,000 a year for those not in special education, a change projected to save public school districts hundreds of millions of dollars a year. Cyber-charter schools are independent public schools that offer classes through electronic means, typically over the internet.

Rep. Bryan Cutler, the Republican floor leader from Lancaster County, called the bill a massive shift in educational priorities that would hurt school choice options.

“Until we fix some of the systemic problems, more money alone will do little for students stuck in schools in crisis,” Cutler said.

It’s unclear whether these policies, drawn from the Basic Education Funding Commission’s report, will survive budget negotiations with the Republican-controlled state Senate. The commission report in January was approved 8-7, with all Republicans and one Democrat opposed.

Republican legislative leaders have called for districts to instead focus on making instructional changes that could boost student achievement.

“More money and a lot of it over the last decade or more has not enhanced student outcomes,” said Rep. Joe D’Orsie, R-York.

Supporters of a major boost in K-12 spending are hoping the time is right, thanks to a projected $14 billion state surplus available and the recent memory of a major court decision last year that found Pennsylvania’s system of funding public schools violates the constitutional rights of students in poorer districts. The state budget is due in three weeks.

School districts considered to be underfunded in Pennsylvania are often faster growing, disproportionately poor or with a student body that has a significant number of minority students. The result can be larger class sizes, underqualified teachers and outdated buildings, textbooks, technology and curriculum.

Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro in the annual budget address in February backed a $1.1 billion increase in public school operations and instruction, a 14% increase, with much of it concentrated among the largest and poorer districts — including many with significant numbers of minority students.