Political Action Group Launched to Help GOP Women Win Elections

State Sens. Marian Bergeson (R-Newport Beach) and Rebecca Q. Morgan (R-Los Altos Hills) announced Saturday that they have formed a political action committee to help Republican women in the state win elections.

It is the first such fund-raising base for Republican women in California, they said. The only comparable group, Morgan said, has been the National Women’s Political Caucus. Although that group claims to support Republican and Democratic women alike, it usually endorses only Democrats, the two state senators said.

Bergeson, who got the idea several months ago, said she had long believed that the Legislature should be more representative of women. “After all, half the voting public are women,” Bergeson said, “but currently only 16 of (California) state legislators are female, only 6 of those Republicans.”

‘Tangible Support’ Needed

Women legislators “tend to be role models. We need to be more than role models, and we need to provide some tangible support to qualified women,” Bergeson said.

She and Morgan announced the new political action committee, or PAC, Saturday night to a gathering of about 100 Republicans at the state Republican Party spring convention. Among those at the reception and applauding the PAC was Rep. Bobbi Fiedler (R-Northridge), a candidate for the U.S. Senate.

The PAC will start its work with $1,000 contributions from each of its founding legislators: Bergeson and Morgan, who will serve as co-chairwomen, and four assemblywomen: Doris Allen (R-Cypress), Marian LaFollette (R-Northridge), Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley) and Sunny Mojonnier (R-San Diego), who will serve as directors.

Because fund raising for state and congressional races in the 1986 elections already is well under way, Bergeson said the PAC may not contribute to candidates this year. Still, she said, she already has received enthusiastic support for the idea from several Republican womens’ clubs.

Local Government Candidates

The PAC not only will support statewide candidates, but qualified Republican women for city council and school board races, Morgan said.

Both said that by qualified candidates, they meant women with leadership ability, ability to raise money and those who share traditional Republican values, especially in promoting free enterprise.

Morgan also said that men would be welcome to donate to the new committee.