Campaign Closet was created in 2019 by women committed to closing the gender gap, especially in politics. As advocates for equality in government, we’ve spent years recruiting, training, and working to elect women and other underrepresented voices to public office. After nearly a decade of combating the myriad challenges that women face in the political sphere, we decided to focus our efforts on one of them: a candidate’s struggle to prove her worth with what she wears.

Politically involved or not, many women understand what it’s like to have a closet full of clothes, yet feel like she has nothing to wear. Many of us have known the stress of styling ourselves for a special event, the influence our clothes can have on our self-worth, and the undeserved scrutiny on our image — meanwhile men’s apparel often goes unnoticed.

When a man can wear the exact same suit over and over again, yet a woman is often judged for her blouse being too revealing, her skirt too short, or wearing the same outfit twice, how can we ever elect equal representation? Campaigns, regardless of the candidate’s gender, should be about platforms and policy, not appearances and apparel.

Campaign Closet is here to bring visibility to these problematic expectations.

We’re committed to reducing barriers for women-identified candidates to enter the race, providing the freedom that allows them to focus on their campaigns instead of their clothing, so that they may succeed in the political arena. With a focus on women of color and working-class women, our organization is creating opportunity, confidence, and electability through the power of image. We will be unstoppable in creating a diverse government that truly represents us all.