A new year always comes with pressure. Reset. Recommit. Fix what’s broken.
But the systems shaping our lives aren’t waiting for us to catch our breath, and they won’t change just because we set better intentions.
So instead of asking how moms can somehow optimize ourselves yet again, this is the question we should be asking in 2026:
Where are the decisions that shape motherhood actually being made, and how do we get moms into those rooms early enough to matter?
Because real change doesn’t come from resolutions. It comes from access, participation, and power.
Power Is Decided Long Before We Vote
There’s a phrase women hear all the time: If you’re not in the room, you’re on the menu.
But many moms know a harder truth. Far too often, we’re invited after decisions are made. Asked to share our stories, not design the systems. Treated as inspiration, not infrastructure.
With midterm elections coming this November, it’s important to remember this: the officials elected in 2026 will decide which policies move and which quietly die. But those decisions don’t start on Election Day. They’re shaped months and years earlier in committee hearings, budget negotiations, coalition calls, and early-stage conversations most people never see.
This is the year to engage upstream — not after the vote.
Why the Political Room Matters Right Now
This past week offered a stark reminder of what happens when moms are locked out of power.
The federal government announced it was freezing over $10 billion in child care and family assistance funds for states including New York, California, Colorado, Illinois, and Minnesota, citing concerns about fraud and misuse. Officials said this pause could delay resources intended to help families afford child care, even as advocates and state leaders warned it would disrupt support for parents and caregivers who already struggle with access and affordability.
That’s the reality when moms are not in the rooms where decisions are made: support can disappear overnight.
At the same time, something very different was unfolding at the state level, and it illustrates what is possible when moms help shape the agenda.
In New York, Governor Kathy Hochul announced a major new investment in child care. This is not just incremental funding. It reflects a shift in how care is understood — from a personal struggle for moms to a public priority for families, businesses, and the workforce.
That shift didn’t happen by accident. For years, moms and advocates refused to accept the status quo.
At Moms First, we treated child care as what it is: core economic infrastructure. That meant helping pass the Marshall Plan for Moms Taskforce in 2022, working directly with Governor Hochul to lay the groundwork for investment, mobilizing employers through our National Business Coalition for Child Care, activating tens of thousands of New York City moms to demand child care as a top voting issue, and elevating child care as a top affordability issue during a pivotal mayoral election.
Together, that work changed how care was understood by policymakers and made real investment possible.
The contrast between these two developments — a federal freeze on funding and a state breakthrough in investment — shows exactly why it matters where moms are in the policymaking process.
When moms are in power rooms early, consistently, and collectively, care becomes a public priority.
When we’re absent, it becomes expendable.
What It Actually Looks Like to Enter the Political Room
For many moms, policy feels distant or intimidating. But political power doesn’t live only in Washington and it’s more accessible than most people realize.
Every bill that becomes law starts as a draft. Every budget line is debated. Every regulation that determines how a policy works in real life must go through public input. These are moments where everyday people can intervene if they know where to look and when to act.
At the federal level, moms can track legislation or hearings through Congress.gov. Every state posts its own bill calendars and public comment opportunities online. Organizations like the National Conference of State Legislatures help explain how these processes work at the state level.
And when federal agencies write or update rules, they’re required to accept public input. Regulations.gov is one of the most direct ways everyday people can weigh in on how policy will actually affect families.
Staying informed about what’s moving at the federal, state, and local level isn’t about becoming a policy expert. It’s about understanding when decisions are still fluid and showing up before outcomes are locked in. Public hearings, comment periods, coalition meetings, and advocacy days are all entry points into the political room.
This is where endurance turns into influence.
What Comes Next
January is about orientation. About learning where the rooms are. About understanding how decisions actually get made, how power moves, and how to enter spaces with intention. It’s about bringing others with you, so no one is left trying to navigate this alone.
In the weeks ahead in The First Word, we’ll go deeper. We’ll talk about what it looks like for moms to run for office and why representation matters. We’ll break down how to become an advocate, even if you’ve never thought of yourself that way. And we’ll explore how moms can organize for change at work and in their communities, wherever they are.
Because the era of being passive is over. Let’s stop waiting to be invited and start running the agenda.
Action Center
We’re Almost There — But Not Yet
Our goal is to bring 10,000 moms into our upcoming documentary as Associate Producers so the story of motherhood in the U.S. is shaped by moms themselves.
Nearly 500 moms have already signed up to host screenings across 43 states, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico. We’re close to nationwide coverage, but we still need moms in Delaware, Iowa, Mississippi, North Dakota, Nebraska, South Dakota, and West Virginia.
If you live in one of the states shown in gray on this map, we’d love for you to sign up to host a screening of the documentary when it premiers this Spring. Or, share this with a friend who does live in one of these states.
Don’t Miss Our Exclusive Virtual Event for Associate Producers
We’re hosting an exclusive virtual event for Associate Producers at the end of January. Invitations go out next week, so sign up now if you want to be included.
Things to Read, Watch, and Listen to This Week
- Explainer: Accountability and Oversight, Essential To Affordable Child Care (First Five Years Fund)
- Opinion: We Need to Build Human Connection For the AI Era (TIME)
- Report: The Impact of Increased ICE Activity on the Child Care Workforce and Mothers’ Employment (New America)
This year, I’m letting go of the idea that moms need to fix themselves to survive broken systems. I’m done with endless conversation that never turns into action, and with mistaking visibility for real impact. We don’t need more advice about how to endure. We need pathways to change what’s failing us in the first place.
Let’s run the agenda,
Reshma Saujani