Surge of women candidates alarmed by Trump puts Rutgers group in national spotlight A political group offers perspective in historic crop of office holders.

Charles Stile | NorthJersey

Show Caption Hide Caption Interview with Debbie Walsh Interview with Debbie Walsh Director of the Center of Women in American Politics at Rutgers

Framed photos of trailblazing political women line the walls and bookshelves of a second floor corner office of Ruth Mandel, co-founder of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.

There's several of Hillary Rodham Clinton in her first lady days. There's a Newsweek cover of Geraldine Ferraro, the first female nominee for vice president in 1984. That is near a wall-size "McCain-Pailn" campaign poster from 2008.

And a jaunty, smiling Christie Todd Whitman beams from a New York Times Magazine cover.

Yet, missing from this "Who's Who" gallery is a figure who may prove to be history's most inspirational force for female office seekers: President Donald Trump.

It is one of the more startling paradoxes of the Trump era, where paradoxes have become almost commonplace.

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Trump, accused by multiple women of harassment and sexual assault, who once boasted of his ability to grope women with impunity, and who allegedly paid hush money to an adult film actress, has inspired a record number of women to seek public office this year.

And the stampede of female candidates has upended the normal boom-and-bust rhythms at this small but influential 12-member think tank, housed inside the Eagleton Institute For Politics offices near the Douglas campus for more than 40 years.

Suddenly, reporters, political operatives, scholars and curious future candidates are banging on its doors, seeking out the non-partisan center's data, perspective and guidance.

In short, Trump has been good for business at Center for American Women and Politics. Yet, Deborah Walsh, the center's director since 2001, would prefer to frame the Trump phenomenon differently.

"I wouldn’t say it's good for business. I would say there is a silver lining,'' said Walsh, who has offered commentary to outlets ranging from ABC Network's "Nightline" to Al Jazeera.

Almost overnight, Trump turned a generation of offended women into activists, who suddenly realized that politics do have consequences, and that the only way to counter Trump -- and preserve cherished gains like healthcare, reproductive rights and environmental protections -- is to wield political power. And for many, that now meant running for public office.

"These women woke up the day after Donald Trump got elected president, turned on the television screen, and said, 'you know what? I have to run for office,' '' Walsh said. And others concluded: " 'Look if this guy can be president of the United States, I can certainly run for Congress or the state legislature. But I also a kind of a need to run this time around,' '' she said.

That fervor has turned into a bounty crop of newcomers. This year, for example, there are 528 women who filed to be candidates for Congress, a 70 percent increase from two years ago. Of that number, 475 candidates are running for the House, a 60 percent jump from 2012 according to CAWP statistics.

The surge is a far cry from 1971 when the group launched its first census of women officeholders by recording their names and background on index cards. Staked by a Ford Foundation grant, the effort was met by skepticism. What was the point of tracking something that barely existed? Women held just two seats in the U.S. Senate and 13 in the House of Representatives, and no state had a woman as governor.

But the next year, the center held its first conference headlined by Georgetown University political scientist Jeane Kirkpatrick, who would later become United Nations ambassador under Ronald Reagan. From there the group began its "anthropological" study of women in politics -- what motivated them to run and what institutional obstacles they faced. The center's mission eventually expanded into a wider examination of women voters and their impact on elections.

By boosting awareness, CAWP also sought to boost female participation. The group also sponsors its annual "Ready to Run" training each spring, a boot camp, of sorts, where prospective female office seekers learn the basics of running a campaign, such as fundraising and canvassing.

By 2016, it seemed that the center's nearly four decades of research and advocacy had reached its dream goal of electing the nation's first woman president. But instead of Hillary Clinton shattering the ultimate glass ceiling, the center's world caved in.

Trump's victory was greeted with shock and fear that it would deal a stinging setback to the group's work.

"I was quite concerned that women would want to crawl under the covers and not come out for at least four years and certainly not participate in the political process,'' Walsh said.

But to Walsh's surprise, the opposite occurred. In the past, the year ended with only about four early registrants in advance of the Ready to Run camp for the following March. But in December 2016, 100 people signed up, she said. They eventually had to turn people away and book additional space at the Douglass student center.

The surge was on.

"We were busier with Hillary Clinton losing the election...than if she had won,'' Walsh said.

The Trump-era frenzy has also brought a dose of anxiety. Energy spent on advocacy is now being spent on managing expectations. This bumper crop of women probably won't yield parity in Congress in November, she warns.

Women comprise 19 percent of House members, and only 25 percent of the current candidates. Many candidates are facing institutional obstacles. Some are running as challengers in districts where the opposing party is heavily favored or the seat is held by an incumbent.

In the House races, 192 women are challengers, and most of them are Democrats. Walsh also notes that 13 women would need to get elected just to fill the seats of retiring House female House members.

"So, let's make sure that we all understand, that we are not going to change 200 plus years of under representation in American politics in one election cycle,'' Walsh said. "This requires a long-term investment of time and energy."

Last Tuesday's primary elections for New Jersey House seats reflected those realities. While six candidates filed to run, doubling the number from 2016, only one candidate, Democrat Mikie Sherrill of Montclair, captured the nomination.

She faces a bruising battle against Republican Jay Webber, a Morris County legislator, for the Eleventh Congressional district that spans parts of Morris, Essex, Passaic and Sussex counties.

Sherrill, whose alarm at the Trump presidency prompted her to run, says she doesn't fear that women will be dispirited if she doesn't win in November.

"A lot of us thought that if we broke through glass ceilings, we flew helicopters, or (became) federal prosecutors – non-traditional roles – that progress would happen, that we would have entree into a more equal, more just world,'' Sherrill said, as she ticked off parts of her own resume. "And recently we saw that this wasn’t the case."

She added, "But it’s a matter we know we need to do more and we’re doing it."