Although much has been made of Florida voting squabbles, the real news from last week's election may be the significant gains made by women, according to several speakers at a Radcliffe Public Policy panel attended by about 80 people last night.

"We're going to have a very different Senate and it's going to matter a great deal," said Thomas Professor of Government and Sociology Theda Skocpol.

Skocpol cited Democratic Michigan senator-elect Debbie A. Stabenow as the "most exciting victory" of the three or four - depending on whether Maria Cantwell wins a close Washington State race - women added to the nine already serving in the Senate.

But Skocpol's optimism was tempered by other members of the panel, who voiced concerns about issues ranging from campaign finance reform to a potential reversal of the FDA's approval of abortion drug RU-486.

Despite a gain of two women governors, making five total, said National Organization of Women (NOW) President Patricia Ireland, there's "a lot of work to do."

"No matter who sits in the Oval Office, we know there's a great risk in the Supreme Court," Ireland said. "We need to pull out all the stops to elect more women, more feminists, because if we don't send in reinforcements in two years, we'll be in a sorry state."

Panelists suggested that the threat of limiting abortion rights had driven many women into the voting booth to support vice president Al Gore '69.

Kirstin D. Grimley, a Nieman fellow and Washington Post staff writer, said that the candidates had all but ignored certain regulatory issues, such as minor changes in the tax code, which could have a disproportionate effect on women. For example, there has been discussion of lengthening the 40-hour work week and changing the definition of an independent contractor.

Generating a laugh, Ireland worried that "Electile Dysfunction" would become the catch phrase of last week's election. Referring to signs at Republican protest rallies saying 'Democrats are Too Dumb to Vote,' she said there had been "a great deal of ageism" in the controversy surrounding Florida voting results.

The event was moderated by Michel M. Martin '80, an ABC News correspondent who spent election night in the network's studios. Martin said that criticizing exit polling or premature network calls of Florida for either candidate is condescending to the public.

"I just don't believe in the internet age we should be expected to protect adults from information," Martin said. "Maybe in the future we'll be more aggressive in reporting that they're only statistical models, but we thought people knew that."

A student interviewed after the discussion said she found it valuable.

"I was able to hear a number of different perspectives--different to varying degrees," Valerie A. Jackson '01 said. "It was something I needed to hear not just as a young person or a young voter but as a potential participant in the political process."