Gisele founded the Vote Nelas movement, the first advocacy group aimed at increasing women’s political presence in Brazil. The project was formed in 2018, organized by ten women in a non-partisan manner but with a common goal: to fight for more women in politics. Before, the suffragettes fought for the right to vote, today we fight for the right to be voted for, to be elected, and to effectively participate in the electoral process.
In 2020, Vote Nelas focused on studying the barriers that prevent women from getting involved in politics and using those findings to mobilize women. Vote Nelas conducted a large qualitative research study through a structured questionnaire and hours of conversations with candidates and elected women from different political parties throughout Brazil. This research led to the formation of the Ambassadors Vote Nelas program which aims to teach political mobilization strategies to women from cities throughout Brazil in 3 stages: (1) The formation of Study Clubs, (2) a Women’s Network that surveys and supports municipal candidates (3) Ambassadors to provide communication materials and weekly monitoring to assist women from all over the country in creating Vote For Them embassies in local municipalities. The first Ambassadors Vote Nelas cohort was made up of more than 500 women.
Gisele also contributed to the successful passage of the Mais Mulheres Na Politica (More Women in Politics) Bill aimed at closing the gender gap in politics by reserving 50% of parliament seats for women (25% for Black women). Brazil has one of the lowest levels of female representation in Congress in the world, with women comprising less than 10% of members. The effort to pass Mais Mulheres Na Politica required the signature of 1% of Brazilian voters, Vote Nelas was able to collect 1.5 million signatures in support of the bill through mobilization efforts. Gisele looks forward to bringing her experience and passion for reducing gender inequity in politics to her new home in Indiana.