The Future Depends on Bipartisanship

by Rachel Pearson, Engage Founder & CEO

Engage recently commissioned a poll on child care legislation and we included the following two questions:

Question 1: How important is it to you for Republicans and Democrats in Congress to work together and compromise on hard problems? 84% said “very important” and 9% said “somewhat important.” (Let’s leave the remaining 6% to the so-called “base” of each party; that seems fair.)

Question 2: Would you be more or less likely to vote for someone who was willing to work with the opposite party to make progress on hard problems, even if it means compromising on some of their positions? 81% in total said likely, with 51%  “much more likely” and 30% “somewhat more likely.” (Leaving 11% “less likely” and 8% “unsure” or “makes no difference.” Again, I will concede the 11% to the base and for the 8% who say they are “unsure,” “it depends,” or “makes no difference,” I simply wish them well.)

These numbers are, in fact, not unusual. For decades, I have seen numerous polls that have shown the same eagerness for Congress to tackle tough problems working across party lines.  And I promise you, there is so much more bipartisanship happening than what we are fed as a daily diet from social media or by elected officials who, “in front of the camera,” are fueled by their respective team’s talking points.

Here are some bipartisan accomplishments worth knowing about. If Engage is committed to one thing, it’s giving you a glimpse of what we are lucky enough to witness firsthand week after week. These bipartisan pieces of legislation are not law yet — they must be passed. But dedicated and thoughtful bipartisan work has been done, the bills have been introduced, and each would make a difference to the health of American women and their families.

The senators listed below decided to work together on this legislation. It didn’t just fall from the sky. They agreed to collaborate, motivated by shared interest, with their staff negotiating back and forth and agreeing to legislative text.

Senator Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD) and Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY): Uterine Fibroid Intervention and Gynecological Health Treatment (U-FIGHT) Act

Uterine fibroids affect 70% to 80% of women by the age of 50 but receive less than .03% of research dollars, forcing women to choose between invasive surgery and living with pain. Black women experience higher rates and more severe symptoms. Congress moves to expand screening, boost funding, and promote less invasive treatments. (This legislation is not new money or a new program.)

Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH): Healthy Moms and Babies Act, addressing the U.S. high mortality birth rates from preventable causes

Delivery units are closing at a dramatic and dangerous rate across the country. This legislation would create coordinated maternity care through Medicaid, expand telehealth access, fund workforce training, and study coverage for doula services to improve labor outcomes.

Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) and Senator David McCormick (R-PA): Addressing Boarding and Crowding in Emergency Departments (ABC-ED) Act

According to the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), emergency room wait times have reached dangerous levels, with 97% of emergency doctors reporting patients boarding in hallways for over 24 hours. This act would create real-time hospital bed tracking systems, public wait-time dashboards, and specialized care models for seniors and psychiatric patients who face the longest delays.

Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE) and Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL): She Develops Regulations in Vehicle Equality and Safety (DRIVES) Act

Women are 73% more likely to be injured and 17% more likely to die in car crashes because safety standards only use male crash test dummies. After 50 years of this practice, Congress requires testing with both male and female dummies to address the less effective safety features for women.

If you follow public discourse in the news and love America, this current moment is exceedingly difficult and heartbreaking.  There are only so many panda and cute baby videos you can watch before the fragility and ugliness of everything careens back. Human nature is running untempered on social media and is echoed through the coarseness of public speech. The sickness of our individual hearts and the collective nation is on very loud display.

And still “behind the camera” many Republican and Democrat members of Congress are working together. Like us, they are struggling in this moment and know in their gut the truth of the polling results above – that the majority of Americans understand – bipartisanship is the only path forward. It always has been and ever will be.

Bipartisanship makes America more economically prosperous and secure and offers the rules of engagement we need to wrestle with the daunting challenges our nation faces. Our future depends on bipartisanship.

Polls show that Americans intuit this and yet all of this compromising and working together is still behind the cameras, unreported, and unchampioned.  This paradox has no simple fix, but Engage believes more talk of bipartisanship and less about blame is a step toward settling down the nation. Our Founders knew the future would be messy and that negotiated compromise within the bounds of the Constitution was fundamental to our survival. 

Imagine for a moment if every conversation with an elected official began with the following question, “What is your favorite piece of bipartisan legislation and how does it help the country?” If may not seem like it from the outside but the ones worth your vote will have a ready answer and will be eager to discuss to with you.

I hope you will continue to join Engage for some unreported hopeful news and to work with us in getting these four pieces of legislation and others like it passed into law.

On October 28, Engage will hand out its annual bipartisanship awards at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. We will keep the 2025 winners secret for a bit longer, but let’s again celebrate the work of last year’s winners: The Honorable Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH), and Katie Rudis Hadji (General Counsel and Legislative Director to Senator Bill Cassidy). We would love to have you join us for this special evening celebrating collaboration across the aisle.