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"With just one week left in this election cycle, you&amp;#x27;ve heard a lot of talk about two men. But November 6 determines the balance of power at all levels of government&amp;amp;#8212;from the Oval Office to Congress down to your own state legislature and city council&amp;amp;#8212;and at each of them, women candidates have put themselves on the line.As you heard this morning from Glamour Editor-in-Chief Cindi Leive, this is a record year, with more women than ever before running for Congress. &amp;quot;Some of the most hotly contested Senate races include women from both sides of the aisle,&amp;quot; says Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University. We&amp;#x27;re also seeing the second-highest number of women candidates at the state level (the record was set in 2010), which adds up to another 2,440 more female names on the ballot next week. The big numbers are important, as more women running should translate into more women leading. But what could that really mean in the halls of government? We asked 15 first-time candidates (among them a college senior, a group of veterans, and Orlando&amp;#x27;s first female police chief!) to tell you in their own words. Tulsi Gabbard, 31, Democrat Running for U.S. House of Representatives, Hawaii&amp;amp;#8217;s 2nd District At 21, Gabbard was the youngest person ever elected to the Hawaii state legislature. If elected, the Army veteran would be the first Hindu-American elected to Congress. What would people be most surprised to know about you? &amp;quot;Out of my whole family (I&amp;#x27;m the fourth of five kids), I was always the shyest&amp;amp;#8212;I used to make my sister go with me to the grocery store so she could talk to the cashier! When I first ran for office, I was WAY outside of my comfort zone, and every knock on every door was predicated by a whole lot of fear, sweat, and prayer.&amp;quot; Elizabeth Emken, 49, Republican Running for U.S. Senate, California Emken, who worked for more than a decade at IBM, began a second career as an activist and an advocate for the organization Autism Speaks after her son was diagnosed with the disorder. What would get more women into politics? &amp;quot;I think we need to reexamine what it is to be someone who is running for office. We have a culture now that promotes career politicians&amp;amp;#8212;those who have been in office their entire lives, or the extremely wealthy. We need to look at what qualifies a person for office in a different way.&amp;quot; Amy Sylvester, 22, Democrat Running for Maine House of Representatives After working for a U.S. Senate campaign, this political science major from Thomas College, now in her last semester, threw her own hat in the ring. Why are you running for office? &amp;quot;I decided to run after being asked by people I really respect. I hope that in the future more women will run without needing to be asked, but also that more people will encourage the women in their lives to step up.&amp;quot; Martha McSally, 45, Republican Running for U.S. House of Representatives, Arizona&amp;amp;#8217;s 2nd District This retired Air Force colonel made U.S. military history twice, as both the first female fighter pilot to fly in combat and the first woman to command a combat aviation unit. What would get more women into politics? &amp;quot;We need women to realize that they can step up and serve, and make a difference. We have such a low percentage of women in the Senate and Congress, and we&amp;amp;#8217;re almost 57 percent of the population. It&amp;amp;#8217;s not a real representative government.&amp;quot; Val Demings, 55, Democrat Running for U.S. House of Representatives, Florida&amp;amp;#8217;s 10th District The youngest of seven children, Demings began her career as a social worker and made history in 2007 when she became Orlando&amp;amp;#8217;s first female police chief. Why are you running for office? &amp;quot;We need leaders in Washington to focus on solving the problems facing America, and who will come together and tackle issues in a way that serves people, not party bosses.&amp;quot; Grace Meng, 36, Democrat Running for U.S. House of Representatives, New York&amp;amp;#8217;s 6th District This Queens assemblywoman, endorsed by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is likely to be New York City&amp;#x27;s first Asian-American in Congress. What is the most important issue facing young women?&amp;quot;I believe there are a lack of female role models for today&amp;#x27;s younger generation of women&amp;amp;#8212;particularly in high level positions within their respective professions. That&amp;#x27;s one of the many reasons I have been an outspoken advocate for more women to run for public office and get involved in government.&amp;quot; Suzette Raines, 28, Republican Running for West Virginia House of Delegates After volunteering for presidential and congressional campaigns in college, she landed an internship in the state legislature that turned her interest to local politics. What would get more women into politics? &amp;quot;We must be confident and eager to pursue roles as entrepreneurs, business and industry experts, educators and academic leaders, and public servants. A woman should never avoid or fear attempting a role or profession that has traditionally been male-dominated.&amp;quot; Silvana Tabares, 33, Democrat Running for Illinois House of Representatives During the decade she&amp;#x27;s worked as a radio and newspaper journalist, the Southwest Chicago-raised Tabares has closely examined her area&amp;#x27;s economic, safety, and education issues. Why are you running for office? &amp;quot;I believe challenges are really opportunities to push yourself to discover something about your character.&amp;quot; Kyrsten Sinema, 36, Democrat Running for U.S. House of Representatives, Arizona&amp;amp;#8217;s 9th District Sinema grew up in a family that struggled to make ends meet, got a full ride to college, and became a social worker before turning to politics. Reports say that if she&amp;#x27;s elected, she would be the first openly bisexual member of Congress. What&amp;#x27;s the most important issue facing young women? &amp;quot;Their right to make personal health care decisions. The Supreme Court is at tipping point and if a liberal jurist retires and a President Romney is in office to appoint a conservative, millions of American women could lose access to birth control and their right to make decisions on what&amp;amp;#8217;s best for their health and their family.&amp;quot; Nily Rozic, 26, Democrat Running for New York State Assembly Rozic was born in Jerusalem and moved with her family to Queens, New York, where she now serves on her community board. What gets you out of bed in the morning? &amp;quot;The notion that people are counting on me, and that my team and I can go out every single day and make a difference. Do you mean literally? Some good Beyonce music&amp;amp;#8212;especially the song &amp;amp;#8220;Run The World (Girls).&amp;amp;#8221; Kim Wyman, 50, Republican Running for Washington Secretary of State She&amp;#x27;s devoted her career to election reform at the state and national levels; if elected, Wyman would be the first Republican woman to serve as Washington&amp;#x27;s Secretary of State. Why are you running for office? &amp;quot;I want to help the people in my life be their best and succeed in the things that are important to them. When I support and encourage those around me to be successful at home, work, or school, my own life is enriched beyond measure.&amp;quot; Mazie Hirono, 64, Democrat Running for U.S. Senate, Hawaii The Japan-born Hirono, who has served three terms in the U.S. House, is the first immigrant woman of Asian ancestry to be sworn into Congressional office. If elected, she&amp;#x27;ll be the first Asian-American woman in the Senate. What would get more women into politics? &amp;quot;Getting them into the political pipeline early; I founded the Patsy T. Mink PAC in Hawaii-to recruit and support pro-choice progressive women. Hawaii has a strong record: Most likely, three of the four members of our congressional delegation next January will be Asian American Pacific Islander women.&amp;quot; Jessica Ehrlich, 38, Democrat Running for U.S. House of Representatives, Florida&amp;amp;#8217;s 13th District This daughter and granddaughter of Holocaust survivors is a lawyer by training; she lived and worked in New York City and Washington, D.C., before returning home to St. Petersburg, Florida, in 2010. What would people be most surprised to know about you? &amp;quot;On September 11, 2001, I was on the ground in lower Manhattan as the World Trade Center collapsed. It was that experience that inspired me to go into public policy.&amp;quot; Tara E. Nelson, 30, Democrat Running for U.S. House of Representatives, Indiana&amp;amp;#8217;s 4th District This single mother&amp;amp;#8212;who became independent herself at the age of 13, after her mother died of breast cancer&amp;amp;#8212;has been involved in local city council meetings for three years. What is the most important issue facing young women? &amp;quot;Equal pay. Nationwide, women are only making 77 percent of what men earn in the same job. We need to teach our women to be more aggressive negotiating pay, and we also need a Paycheck Fairness Act passed in Congress. With more women in the government at the local, state, and federal levels, we could better advocate for equality.&amp;quot; Catherine Osten, 56, Democrat Running for Connecticut State Senate Osten served in Japan during the Vietnam era, returned to the U.S. to finish college, and began working for the Department of Corrections, where she advocated for the fair treatment of women in the workplace. What would get more women into politics? &amp;quot;Engaging young girls from grammar school on up in the process, letting them know our history. Whether it&amp;amp;#8217;s current history with Lilly Ledbetter, or back to WWII when women really held the country together, we tend to gloss over all the work that&amp;amp;#8217;s been done to get us where we are today.&amp;quot; Aryanna Strader, 29, Democrat Running for U.S. House of Representatives, Pennsylvania&amp;#x27;s 16th District The youngest of 10 children, Strader grew up in a family living below the poverty line. She is an Iraq War veteran and a mother of two. What would people be most surprised to know about you? &amp;quot;That I could disassemble and reassemble a M203 grenade launcher while listening to Katy Perry on my iPod.&amp;quot; &amp;amp;mdash;Additional reporting by Grace Gavilanes, Rebecca Webber, and Linda Kramer Jenning Can you argue with that? Which candidate do you identify with the most? P.S. Read Stephen Colbert&amp;#x27;s piece he wrote exclusively for Glamour on why we need a lady-leader! Photos Courtesy of Candidates"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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