Women as "change voters"

I just finished reading a very interesting study called Women on their Own: Demanding Change and Attention to their Challenges. It provides some surprising statistics about the marriage gap in America today:

Collectively, unmarried women have the power to change our country. They are part of an emerging American majority as family structure has changed dramatically over the past 50 years, and the number of unmarried Americans has increased considerably. During the 1950’s, approximately 80 percent of Americans lived in households headed by married couples; now that number is just less than half. By 2008, more than half of households will be headed by an unmarried person.

Wow. I had no idea that the marriage gap had grown quite that much! A full 46% of age-eligible voters are unmarried women, and they are largely an untapped resource: many single women don't vote because they don't feel that they can find trustworthy information about candidates, or they doubt their ability to change the system. However, single women in particular have tremendous reasons to vote:

...[we see an] Administration that continues to fail to address rising healthcare costs, education, the economy, and retirement security. The current budget proposal, moreover, promises further trouble; cuts to Medicaid, housing assistance, childcare assistance, childcare enforcement and job training will further challenge unmarried women, particularly if they have children.

According to the study, 74% of unmarried women think the country is on the wrong track. If all those women were to vote, what could stop a major change in Washington come November?

Voting results show that unmarried women vote for change; in the 2004 Presidential elections, single women chose Kerry by a +25 point margin. Imagine how different our country would be today if all single women voters had made it to the polls!

...this gap signifies one of the most important developments in American politics – unmarried women represent the greatest source of growth for a progressive coalition, and the expression of their views have the ability to change the public policy direction of the country.

Do you still think your vote doesn't count?