Originally published by Maggie Brown for WIS The South Carolina Judicial Merit Selection Commission announced its six candidates for the next open state supreme court seat. In South Carolina, the supreme court is chosen by the commission, which is made up of 10 people. Six of those members are elected representatives from the house and senate. Four of the members are not representatives. Justice Donald Beatty ― who has reached the South Carolina Supreme Court’s age limit ― is retiring this year. After his retirement, Justice John Kittridge will become chief and take Beatty’s place. The six ca ..read more

Originally published by Katie Martin and Alix Sullivan for Governing The makeup of city councils nationwide tends to change every four years because of resignations, the election of new members and term limits, among other reasons. A review of 15 large-city councils by The Pew Charitable Trusts highlights some major changes in 2024, particularly in the share of seats held by women. The analysis provides a snapshot of the city councils in Baltimore; Boston; Chicago; Dallas; Detroit; Houston; Los Angeles; New York City; Philadelphia; Phoenix; Pittsburgh; San Antonio; San Diego; San Jose, Calif ..read more

Originally published by Zachary Roth And John Cole for the Pennsylvania Capital-Star This year’s presidential election will be the first since generative AI — a form of artificial intelligence that can create new content, including images, audio, and video — became widely available. That’s raising fears that millions of voters could be deceived by a barrage of political deepfakes. But, while Congress has done little to address the issue, states are moving aggressively to respond — though questions remain about how effective any new measures to combat AI-created disinformation will be. “I thin ..read more

Originally published by Tzili Mor for The Hill Never before would so many people worldwide heed Bob Marley’s rousing anthem to “Stand up for your rights” — particularly the most basic, central right in a democracy — the right to vote.   With half the world voting in over 80 national elections, 2024 will be the biggest election year in history. While some elections may not be fully free and fair, the voices of over half the populace — the voices of women — might be severely constrained.      Women face barriers to equal and active politica ..read more

Originally published by Carol Kinsey Goman, Ph.D. for Forbes There are two sets of qualities that people look for in leaders: warmth/likeability/empathy and power/confidence/authority. While women often excel in displaying warmth (which shows up in their influence and collaboration skills), they may hesitate to directly seek or show power. Some women, however, stand out as both the warm and powerful leaders they truly are. As Women’s History Month draws to a close, it serves as timely reminder to share what I’ve learned about the communication skills of the powerful women leaders I worked wit ..read more

Originally published by Dr. Shaheena Janjuha-Jivraj for Forbes 2024 is a significant year for elections, and a record number of voters are heading to the polls, with just under 50% of the global population participating in elections in at least 64 countries. If we focus on the leadership struggle in the United States, the two most likely candidates, Joe Biden and Donald Trump, were both born in the 1940s, both white men. Both demonstrate how difficult it is for candidates from diverse backgrounds to smash political leadership positions’ concrete ceiling. Fifty-one years ago, in 1972 ..read more

Originally published by Dalya Alberge for the Guardian In Greek legends, the Amazons were feared and formidable women warriors who lived on the edge of the known world. Hercules had to obtain the magic girdle of the Amazonian queen Hippolyte in one of his 12 labours, and Achilles killed another queen, Penthesilea, only to fall in love with her as her beautiful face emerged from her helmet. These horseback-riding, bow-wielding nomads, who fought and hunted just like men, have long been shrouded in myth, but archaeologists are discovering increasing evidence that they really did exist. Exc ..read more

Originally published by Patrick Marley for the Washington Post In a scenario that has played out in three states in recent years, a federal court ruled Thursday that time had run out to draw a new congressional district in South Carolina and that the state would have to proceed this fall with an existing election map the court had previously deemed illegal. The ruling echoes redistricting cases in other Southern states where courts found that congressional maps violated the voting rights of Black voters and other people of color but allowed them to be used anyway, at least temporarily. In rec ..read more

The Who’s on the Move, Entrepreneur Minute is an interview in support of the undeniable impact that entrepreneurs have on our communities. We will be highlighting 20 entrepreneurs in each of our markets (Columbia, Greenville and Charleston) with a short video. You will see a diverse group of entrepreneurs and we will be exploring the theme of overcoming obstacles. Barbara Rackes, President, SC Women in Leadership (SC WIL) Barbara Rackes is often remembered for her years in the women’s apparel industry, where she built a $10 million company doing business in three southeastern cities and e ..read more

Originally published by Harvard Business Review It’s been nearly two decades since the term “glass cliff” was coined; it refers to the tendency for women to break through the glass ceiling to top management roles only when there is a big crisis to overcome, which makes it more difficult for them to succeed. In short, senior female leaders are often set up to fail — and this continues to happen today, as recent examples from business, politics, and academia show. Sophie Williams, a former C-suite advertising executive and global leader at Netflix, has researc ..read more