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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at American chapter.

Election season is heating up, and with actual primary elections slowly moving towards us, the 2016 presidential candidates are starting to ramp up their campaigns even more than before. Hillary Clinton, the current democratic frontrunner is no exception. Her campaign, though, is getting a boost in a big and unusual way – in the form of her husband, former President Bill Clinton.

During her past presidential run, Hillary made a point to distance herself from her husband and cement her own political status; this time around, her equally famous husband is stepping into the campaign. Many have questioned why President Clinton has become an active member of Hillary’s campaign so early. The former Secretary of State has not been doing as well in the polls as many expected and her husband is wildly more popular at the moment. With his support, the campaign can more easily maintain its early lead.

Others are wondering, though, if President Clinton’s involvement in Hillary’s campaign has to do with the fact that she is a woman. As the first serious female contender for president of the United States, Hillary Clinton surely provides inspiration to many young women aspiring to be leaders in their respective fields, but it seems that she still struggles to attract male support. Some recent polling has found that Hillary is as unpopular with men as Donald Trump is with women.

But why? Is there any reason Hillary can’t attract male voters other than the fact that she’s a woman? She surely has not gotten on the level of Trump and his relationship with female voters. Somehow, the only way Hillary can attract male support is through the help of her husband. It’s not like she hasn’t done anything on her own though, Secretary Clinton was one of the most influential first ladies in history and had a successful tenure as Secretary of State, but she remains a “woman’s candidate”.  

As the campaign looks forward, hopefully Secretary Clinton can use her husband’s support to become just a regular candidate and not “just” a female candidate.

 

Photo Credits: 1, 2, 3

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Hannah Zakrzewski, better known as Hannah Zak, is a sophomore History major with minors in Theater and Public Administration and Policy and a full time nasty woman. No, she does not know what she wants to do, and yes, she will find a job with a degree in History. Hannah is aggressively from New York, particularly from her hometown, Buffalo. She is passionate about Alexander Hamilton, theater and tv, politics, coffee, Tina Fey, The West Wing, and monograms. 
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