(Photo by Gage Skidmore - CC BY 2.0)

Hillary Clinton at a campaign event in January 2016.

Eight years ago, Hillary Clinton famously said her campaign for President put “18 million cracks” in the proverbial glass ceiling.

Thursday night, she will become the first women ever to accept a major party’s nomination for president.

It’s a historic moment that’s been a long time coming, according to Shirley Sandelands, president of the Arizona League of Women Voters.

The League of Women Voters was formed 96 years ago, in 1920, the same year that women got the right to vote.

Sandelands said the league was formed to inform voters about issues, and get them involved in politics and voting. They don’t endorse candidates, she said, but they do come together on issues they think are important, hold voter forums, debates, and, of course, they work to get women, especially young women, to think about running for office.

One program they run brings women politicians to one Arizona high school each year to talk to some young women students, she said, so they start thinking about what it would be like to run for office.

Hillary Clinton’s nomination is “extremely historic,” she said. Even though the league doesn’t endorse any candidates, Sandelands said she thinks it’s great that a woman has finally reached this level.

“I think that this is a woman who has worked hard and had a passion about certain issues,” she said.

And, Clinton is someone who has worked in various positions, from her start as an attorney, to her time as a senator and Secretary of State.

“We probably need to see more women do that,” she said.

And, to do that, she thinks we need to start young.

“You need to get students into county and city commissions, or into working for candidates so that they see what the process is and see how decisions may have impact on them,” she said. “Somehow, it has to come through education and information.”