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State Sen. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, strongly encouraged women to run for public office during the League of Women Voters of Berkeley, Albany and Emeryville annual community luncheon Friday. 

“Don’t be shy,” she said, addressing the women among the 170 people who attended the event at the HS Lordship on the Berkeley Marina. “No one is going to invite you and you shouldn’t wait for your turn because it will never come.” 

Although the number of women who entered politics steadily increased in the past three decades, Speier said there is still room  

for improvement.  

“While our numbers are up in public office,” she said. “We still have only 23 women serving the Assembly in California out of 80.” Likewise, she said, only 25 percent of the state senate are women. At the federal level, the statistics are even worst. The number of women in the U.S Senate, for instance, reaches only 13 percent.  

Since her election in 1998, Speier has worked on a number of women’s issues. Among other things, she initiated legislation that added contraception methods approved by the Food and Drug Administration to insurer’s prescription benefits. In the past few months, she also held a series of hearings on the gender disparity in the University of California hiring practices.  

With the help of organizations like the League of Woman Voters, she said, issues such as the discrimination against women in wages, or the need for better access to women’s health care, could be better addressed. For years, the League of Women Voters, which in California counts a large number of both male and female members, has influenced public policies and fostered citizens’ participation in government through education and advocacy. Today however, the league needs to adopt new strategies, Speier said. 

“It is time for the league to take out the white gloves,” she said. “It’s time for you to use the power that you have by your label alone.”  

To have more impact, she added, the league should identify three to four issues every year and submit them to the state legislature. The organization could then publish annual reports and rank legislators according to their efficiency in addressing the referred issues.  

“Take that research that you have and use it to change public policies,” she said. 

Local members of the league reacted positively to Speier’s suggestions. Whether her recommendations will be put into practice, however, will be the state league’s decision. 

“I think [the suggestions] are absolutely perfect,” said Jo Ann Price, president of the League of Women Voters of Berkeley, Albany and Emeryville. “We have to have our state league of women voters do that, but it is something we will definitely pursue.” 

Friday was the local League of Women Voters third annual community luncheon. The event is the Berkeley, Albany and Emeryville league’s main fundraiser, but it is also designed as an opportunity to bring together businesses, community members, and elected officials. Although organizers declined to anticipate how much money the league would gather through this event, they expected to raise more than the $6,000 received last year. A number of Berkeley personalities attended the luncheon, including Mayor Shirley Dean, UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Berdahl, state Assemblywoman Dion Louise Aroner, D-Berkeley, and U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-CA.