20 sought-after female political strategists to watch

Business Insider: 20 sought-after female political strategists to watch

Johanna Silva Waki, vice president of training and community engagement at EMILY's List
Silva Waki said she's been fighting for immigrant's rights for decades. Her college-age self became incensed by a 1994 ballot initiative cutting state-run services in California. But there was little she could do to fight back — until the emigrant from Nicaragua became a citizen two years later.

As part of the electorate, she immersed herself in citizenship-application drives and advocating for immigrant and student rights. In recent years, her advocacy efforts have contributed to propping up female candidates including Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat of Nevada, as well as ushering in the country's first majority-female legislature in 2018.

“It's crucial that women see themselves reflected in their leaders,” Silva Waki told Insider of the glass ceilings left to shatter.