Watch CBS News

Monica Owens Believes GOP Gaining In Women's Vote

DENVER (CBS4) - It's no secret the female vote is very important in this year's presidential election, and it's especially the case in Colorado.

Monica Owens says politics is in her blood. She was 15 years old when her father, Bill Owens, was elected governor of Colorado. Today, at 28, she is one of Colorado's youngest national delegates and the chair of Women for Mitt.

"That's my whole job, is to outreach to women, and yet the Democrats are saying that we don't care about women," Owens said.

The outreach includes weekly phone banks run by women volunteers. Many of them are new to politics, like Nancy McKiernan, who says she didn't even know what a delegate was four years ago, and she's now is part of Colorado's national delegation.

"Just by show of how many women are here today on a Friday afternoon making phone calls; that speaks volumes," McKiernan said.

Mitt Romney needs every one of them. The female voting block has never been more important. Nationwide, turnout by women is higher than men, and in Colorado there are nearly 114,000 more women registered to vote than men.

President Obama won the female vote in 2008 by 13 points and is framing Republicans as anti-women when it comes to things like birth control and reproductive rights. McKiernan calls it propaganda.

"The women who I talked to mainly are concerned about the economy. They are concerned about being able to put food on the table," McKiernan said. "They are concerned, 'Can I pay for gas, or can I buy groceries?' "

Katie Witt agrees. She's a national delegate as well and been involved in politics for years. She says she's never seen women so engaged.

"They have been asking me more questions and saying, 'Well, what does so-and-so think about this? … I have this much time, how can I help?' " Witt said.

"We have women's walk days. We're going to do informational meetings across state at women's homes," Owens said.

With unemployment numbers showing nearly six million women out of work, with almost 100,000 in Colorado, Owens says this is the year Republicans close the gender gap.

"I have 3,000 women around state who are interested in helping and that list is growing," Owens said. "I think this year will be completely different for the Republicans and the women's vote."

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.