Bellamy Asks Women to Run For Seats at 1980 Conventions

Women should actively seek delegate slots for the 1980 presidential nominating conventions, Carol Bellamy, president of the New York City Council told a crowd of 120 in the Kennedy School Forum last night.

"Unless care is taken 75 per cent of the delegates will be men," Bellamy said. Urging women to become knowledgeable about the political process, she added, "You've got to go out and do it. Think about running and do it."

Women would have to decide whether to operate as a bloc or within traditional political channels at the convention, Bellamy told the mostly female audience.

Jill Ruckelshaus drew frequent laughter from the crowd as she discussed the problems of Republican feminists at conventions and in the party in general.

"The words 'Republican Feminist' are not mutually exclusive," she said.

"I could answer with one word the role of women at the 1980 Republican convention," she said. "But then we can always look for possibilities," she added. Ruckleshaus termed presidential candidate John B. Anderson Jr. (R. Ill.) "particularly supportive" of women's causes. She cited Anderson's support of the Equal Rights Amendment, of abortion rights, and family planning as reasons for support.

At the end of the discussion, Dr. Sally Lunt, chairman of the Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus who moderated the talk urged women interested in running for convention slots to get information on the process from their state party committees.