From the Associated Press:

In New Jersey and Virginia, two states holding legislative elections this year, a wave of female first-time candidates say they were spurred into action by the January women’s march, and dismay over the election results.

Political analysts will be watching closely to see if there’s a shift in the red-blue balance, but the newfound enthusiasm for politics among women — particularly young women like Chen — is also drawing attention. Like her, a number of them say they were inspired by Barack Obama’s suggestion, in his farewell speech, to “grab a clipboard” and collect signatures to run for office themselves, if they were disappointed with their elected officials.

“This moment is unprecedented,” says Stephanie Schriock, president of EMILY’s List, which works to recruit and elect pro-choice Democratic women. “We’ve never seen anything like it.” She says since Election Day, her organization has heard from over 13,000 women from all 50 states interested in running for office.

To compare: In 2015 and 2016 combined, about 920 women contacted the group. “And that was a good year!” she notes.