1000 Women Trained to Vote, Run for Office and Claim Leadership in a Single Day

NEW YORK, May 3, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- VoteRunLead announces Dare to Lead, an historic, multi-city, women's leadership conference using live-stream technology and 7 in-person locations to train 1,000 women leaders on June 18^th. Over 500 women will congregate in 7 cities across the U.S. including New York, NY, Atlanta, GA, Denver, CO, Minneapolis, MN, St. Louis, MO, Austin, TX, and just announced Nashville TN. Hundreds more will join online at www.VoteRunLead.org.

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"Whether it's equal pay for our country's top female athletes or sexism in the presidential election, this year's issues are crying out for more women at the decision-making table. Dare to Lead will identify and inspire a new cadre of women ready to represent themselves – and their issues – all across America," says Erin Vilardi, Founder of VoteRunLead. 

Dare to Lead is presenting real solutions and providing the tools necessary to move women and our democracy towards true transformation through two key partnerships. First, IGNITE, the premier young women's political and civic leadership organization, will lead an intensive track aimed at college-aged women 17-22 years old.

"Women are half the population but less than 20% of elected officials. Young women in particular have tremendous passion for public service," said IGNITE founder and president Dr. Anne Moses. "IGNITE is committed to building the next generation of women who are ready to run for office."

VoteRunLead hast teamed up with The NYC Veterans Alliance to announce 35 full scholarships for female veterans, military spouses and widows to get ready to run for elected office in all 7 locations. "Women in particular often need an extra push to view themselves as qualified, capable candidates, so we are truly thrilled to open up VRL's daylong Dare to Lead to women who have served in any branch of the military. It is an exciting step forward in ensuring women veterans can continue their service to the country as elected officials—whether as city council members, state legislators, or members of Congress."

VRL and NYCVA will award five full scholarships for female veterans in Atlanta, Austin, Denver, Minneapolis, St. Louis, and Nashville. Further discounts are available for all women veterans as well as military spouses and widows to encourage larger participation. The deadline for applications is May 17, via The NYC Veterans Alliance website. Scholarship winners for each city will be announced on May 25.

Dare to Lead will call women across generations to action, to be courageous and incite change for themselves, for their children and for our country. On June 18, attendees are challenged to invite another 1,000 women through VoteRunLead's online recruitment tool, doubling the impact and tapping new women leaders. Following the event, each attendee will receive access to online learning to continue their leadership development.  College participants will be given the tools to organize IGNITE Chapters on their respective campuses.

"We only get one democracy; this monumental conference will attract a diverse group of women including trailblazers, game changers and high-level executives to link arms in leadership," shared Vanessa Cooksey, Head of Community for Wells Fargo and lead sponsor of Dare to Lead. 

To Tweet at the event, use @VoteRunLead, @IGNITE_National. Hashtags for the event include: #Dare2Lead #VRLnation #DeclareYourAmbition

Dare to Lead information and registration are available at: VoteRunLead.org. Erin Vilardi, Founder and CEO of VoteRunLead, Anne Moses, founder and President of IGNITE, and Kristen Rouse, Founding Director of the NYC Veterans Alliance, are available for interviews.

Contact Emily Weiss at 646-801-7875 or Email.

About VoteRunLead:

VoteRunLead is a national, nonpartisan organization that unleashes the power of women leaders in democracy through training, technology and community. We aim for large-scale impact on women's community and political leadership never before seen in the United States. By harnessing social networks as a new and powerful recruitment tool, creating an online platform to learn to run and lead, and conducting in-person trainings that build powerful networks, VoteRunLead will fuel women's ambition for civic leadership and close the knowledge gap around politics for women from all classes, cultures and colors. www.voterunlead.org

About IGNITE:

IGNITE is building a national movement to dramatically increase the pool of women who are prepared and eager to become the next generation of political leaders. As a nonpartisan 501c3, IGNITE builds political ambition in high school and college-aged young women in their own communities.  We provide civic education, exposure to women in political leadership, hands on training and work opportunities, and a peer network of women who support and nurture each other's aspirations for civic and political leadership. 

www.ignitenational.org 

About NYC Veterans Alliance:

The NYC Veterans Alliance is the leading non-governmental advocacy voice on NYC Veterans policy. Using input, participation, and collaboration from our community of veterans, military reservists, family members, and service providers, the NYC Veterans Alliance develops policy positions and takes action to transform recommendations into law, policy, and community practice in order to improve the lives of NYC veterans, service members, and their families. http://www.nycveteransalliance.org

About Wells Fargo:

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, community-based financial services company with $1.8 trillion in assets. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through 8,800 locations, 13,000 ATMs, the internet (wellsfargo.com) and mobile banking, and has offices in 36 countries to support customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately 269,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 30 on Fortune's 2015 rankings of America's largest corporations. In 2015, Wells Fargo donated $281.3 million to support social, economic, and environmental initiatives and causes and Wells Fargo team members volunteered 1.86 million hours in their communities. Wells Fargo's vision is to satisfy our customers' financial needs and help them succeed financially. Wells Fargo perspectives are also available at Wells Fargo Stories and Wells Fargo Blogs.

SOURCE VoteRunLead

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https://voterunlead.org