In Monroe, population 13,795, more than 55 percent of the city’s residents are men.
On the City Council, population seven, 100 percent of the membership is men.
That ratio concerns some residents, who are gearing up to balance the proportion of men and women in Monroe city government.
"There’s hardly women anyplace except as mayor," former City Council member Penny Sopris-Kegerreis said, referring to Mayor Donnetta Walser. "We don’t have women who come out as candidates — I don’t know why. I wish I did."
Sopris-Kegerreis, often referred to as "Penny K" in town, has long offered her opinions on the subject of equalizing Monroe leadership’s gender balance. She’s even touched on it in a column she writes, "Crumbs From My Cracker Barrel."
But it was a man — City Council candidate R. Todd Fredrickson — who recently approached Sopris-Kegerreis with the idea to organize what has now been named the Women’s Forum for Balanced Government.
"My motivation is really just an interest in the whole process," said Fredrickson, who lost his bid for City Council in this fall’s primary election. "I don’t know if I’ll run again. But I just like watching how it works. It’s kind of like a puzzle, you know?"
Fredrickson, a member of the city’s ethics board, said it’s puzzling why more women don’t get involved. Monroe seems to be one of only a handful of all-male councils in the area, including the Sultan City Council and the Snohomish County Council.
The goal of the forum will be to teach Monroe women how to get more involved, and find women who want to serve on the City Council or the city’s boards and commissions.
"I’d like to see at a minimum of one and hopefully more women running for positions" in 2005, Fredrickson said.
He said he will meet next week with Sopris-Kegerreis, who retired in November from the council, to mesh out a plan for the women’s forum.
"The greatest end result of it would be a broader viewpoint" in city leadership, Fredrickson said. "There’s a difference in men and women and how they’re going to act and react."
Though it’s early — the next City Council seats aren’t up for grabs until 2005 — Fredrickson would like to see the forum begin meeting in January.
Politics are a hard sell during the holiday months anyway, Sopris-Kegerreis said.
"It’s not the time of year to try to get the attention of women. They’ve got things on their minds, so let’s not push it," she said.
The former councilwoman said the women’s forum would be used primarily to educate rather than to "form opinions for people."
"I think it’s very important that we get it off the ground," Sopris-Kegerreis said. "I think we’ve got tremendously bright women in this town that are very capable. I just hope we can promote more interest and a willingness to participate."
The city’s decisions weren’t meant to be made entirely by men, she said.
Walser said in decades past, only a handful of women have served on the council. She was one of them. And now she is Monroe’s second female mayor.
She said she doesn’t see the city’s balance of men and women in leadership as a problem.
"However, I think having women involved gives you a different perspective at times — a balance," Walser said. "To be honest, I don’t look at it as male or female particularly. It’s a job, and I think you look at the people and their qualifications and desires."
But Walser has discussed the topic with U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. They discussed the book about women in the U.S. Senate, "Nine and Counting."
Walser said even at the national level, women are often trying to hold a family together while trying to do their job. Male senators, often with the support of wives and family, can focus primarily on their job, she said.
"I think at times it’s difficult for women who have families," Walser said. "It’s a big step, even for local government. But this group might encourage more women to look."
For those who are looking, Walser is accepting applicants for the city’s planning committee and library board.
"Any time you have diversity, it gives you a balance and a perspective that you normally don’t have," Walser said. "Everyone’s bringing their own background to the table."
Reporter Jennifer Warnick: 425-339-3429 or jwarnick@heraldnet.com.
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