Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been on the campaign trail rallying female voters, but her strategy may be part of a longer term goal of solidifying women's support for a potential 2016 presidential bid,
The Washington Post reported.
Clinton's rhetoric on the stump has focused on women's issues in addition to calls for women to vote, often discussing work and the economic difficulties many women in the middle class are suffering.
"Reach out particularly to every single woman you know, because women's rights are like the canary in the mine,"
Clinton said at a weekend rally for North Carolina Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan, according to the Post.
"If you don't protect women's rights at home and around the world, everybody's rights are at risk. And there is a concerted effort right now to turn back that clock, isn't there?"
She has also campaigned on behalf of female candidates in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Kentucky, and California, among others, emphasizing that there are more than 100 female candidates vying for office in the midterm elections.
Clinton's focus on women likely reflects broader concerns within the Democratic Party about female turnout which could damage Democrats chances across the country.
The Post noted that her messages regarding women are also designed to resonate with the 2016 Democratic primary electorate in anticipation of a possible White House bid.
Republicans, however, do not see a link to Clinton's electoral ambitions. They say that Clinton is merely trying to reinforce the Democrats' strategy to paint Republicans with the
"war on women" image, which some pundits debate its likely effectiveness.
"Hillary is taking a page out of the Democrats' worn-out 'war on women' messaging," said Kirsten Kukowski, press secretary at the Republican National Committee, according to the Post. "Women are an important part of the electorate that the Republican Party is engaging every day."
Clinton has also spent more time talking about her roles as a mother and grandmother, and even of some of the childcare challenges she faced as a working mother when her daughter, Chelsea, was young.
The liberal PAC Emily's List says that women's issues resonate with the electorate and remain a key concern of a vast portion of the public, something the Post said Clinton will likely be aware of.
"Our research shows that economic security for women and families is the No. 1 concern on the campaign trail," Jess McIntosh, the group's communications director, told the Post.
"Women's economic issues have been near the top for a number of years, but they have taken a leap forward since 2012, when the Republican Party shifted so far to the right."
Democrats also realize that shoring up the women's vote could be a crucial antidote to the negative effect the president's approval ratings is having on Democratic candidates across the country.
"We need to win women by more than we lose men and we have to have women turn out," Democratic pollster Celinda Lake told the Post.
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