Former Wall Street executive Sallie Krawcheck explains why Trump becoming president 'may be one of the best things that's ever happened for feminists'

On November 8th, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump eclipsed the 270 electoral votes needed to win the general election and become president-elect of the United States, in turn completing the biggest upset in modern political history.

Trump's victory over Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton shocked the nation. In addition to speculation over how Trump's presidency will affect laws and policies, many wondered whether his win signified that America isn't ready for a female president.

Sallie Krawcheck, a former Wall Street executive and founder and CEO of Ellevest, doesn't think so.

"I don't think it was a one-issue race," she told Business Insider. "I don't think it was 'We're women, so we're going to vote for women.'"

Krawcheck went on to say that she believes Trump's victory over Clinton will actually help spur momentum for feminist movements.

"I'm going to make a controversial statement: I think that Trump being elected president, Trump running for president, may be one of the best things that's ever happened for feminists and feminism," she said.

She explains:

"I was talking to my daughter the other day, who was upset about this, and I said to her, 'Look, it's on the table. It's there. We know these Billy Bush conversations are taking place, let's deal with it.' We read this summer the op-ed about bro talk on Wall Street. Let's bring it all up and talk about it.

"And recognize too that this sense of 'We have this momentum in feminism and away we go!' is actually a false, false view. We're not adding substantially to women who are CEOs of big companies, that's stalled out. Gender diversity in my old industry, the financial services industry, Wall Street, stalled out."

While women are far better off professionally than they were two decades ago - starting a business, pursuing a non-traditional career path, and freelancing part-time are more accessible opportunities today - progress has stagnated in recent years, according to Krawcheck. 

And she believes that Trump's controversial campaign - in which the rights and treatment of women became a divisive, recurring theme - and surprising White House victory will spark more action and help build momentum within feminism.

"I think we might look back at this period a handful of years from now and say 'That was actually a watershed positive moment for feminism and the advancement of women,'" she said. "We hope!"

Watch the full video of Krawcheck's comments below: