Data to Diversity — Electeds 2025

Executive Summary

In 2022, the New Jersey Legislature passed legislation mandating the collection and analysis of data, specifically regarding race/ethnicity and gender, about the state’s elected officials. Directing the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University to conduct this research and maintain a database of elected officials, the legislature aimed to close knowledge gaps on the demographics of elected officials who represent the interests of the citizens of New Jersey at the local, county, state, and federal levels. In this second report of the series, we provide details on methods we used to update the data from the original report and track changes in the data from year to year. As in the first installment, the data reveals the persistent underrepresentation of women and significant disparities in representation among various racial/ethnic groups. Finally, we offer updates to our recommendations for creating a model for the sustainable collection of this data over time, as well as practical interventions aimed at diversifying the pool of the state’s elected leaders.

Data Collection Methodology

This report is a second report in a series; the first report was published in 2023. For the data collection for the first report, CAWP partnered with the Center for Public Interest Polling to conduct a survey of all currently serving officeholders in New Jersey at the congressional, statewide elective executive, state legislative, county, and municipal levels to collect demographic data. Despite multiple attempts to contact elected officials and using various outreach techniques, the response rate was only 16.1%. As outlined in the previous report, three major challenges emerged in achieving this: the absence of mandatory participation by officeholders in completing demographic surveys, the limitation of surveys and the resulting reliance on proxy coding, and the unavailability of comprehensive contact lists for currently serving officeholders..Due to the low survey response rate, CAWP pursued a different strategy for this second round of data collection.   

Having exhausted the use of survey outreach for the first report, we decided to bypass the survey process altogether for this round of data collection. Previous data collection efforts relied heavily on expert proxy coding – using public statements, direct contact, and other means – to determine gender codes at all levels of office and race/ethnicity codes at most levels. Since many officeholders from the previous report remain in office, this round included the existing data and employed expert proxy coding for gender for new officeholders of all levels, as well as race/ethnicity data for all levels except for municipal. Updates were made manually by comparing the previous list of officials to identify new officeholders and remove those no longer serving.

Additionally, to better understand the demographics of municipal officeholders in New Jersey, this dataset was supplemented with voter file data from the Catalist National Database. This data is the source for race/ethnicity findings for municipal officeholders. All other data in this report –including municipal gender – was provided by CAWP through prior survey responses and expert proxy coding, both past and current. Since the race/ethnicity data originates from the voter file, it is only reported in the aggregate form and is not available in our public database. Of the 3,459 municipal officeholders, the voter file was able to predict race/ethnicity for 80.5% of them. 

Findings

Download NJ Elected Officials Public Dataset (2024)

This report provides updated data on the gender makeup of all elected officials in New Jersey and the racial makeup of officeholders at the congressional, state legislative, and county levels. Additionally, this report incorporates voter file data to present aggregate data on race at the municipal level, which was not previously available in our first report. 

Gender Diversity

Women continue to be underrepresented at every level of office in New Jersey. Across all levels of office, women comprise 30.5% of officeholders, almost unchanged from 29.5% in 2023. This mirrors national proportions, with women’s representation across most levels of office hovering at or under a third of officeholders. At the time of data collection (Spring 2024), women made up 14.3% (two of 14 members) of the New Jersey congressional delegation. As a result of the 2024 election, women now make up 28.6% of the congressional delegation (four of 14 members). Three of the four women members are women of color. Prior to the 2024 elections, a total of seven women had ever represented New Jersey in Congress. Of those women, only one was a woman of color (Bonnie Watson Coleman).

County-level offices had the highest proportion of women’s representation in the state, with women comprising 34.5% of officeholders. Following closely was the state legislature, where women comprised 34.2% of seats, and municipal offices, where women comprised 30.2% of all municipal seats. Among mayors of cities with populations over 30,000, the gender disparity grows significantly, with women holding only 16.0% of those positions.

Racial Diversity

White men continue to be the most overrepresented group at every level of office in New Jersey. Asian American/Pacific Islander women, Latinas, and Latinos in New Jersey face the most significant disparities between representation in government and representation in the population.

Overall, white men account for 52.5% of New Jersey officeholders at the congressional, state legislative, and county levels. According to 2023 U.S. Census population estimates, white men account for 26.4% of New Jersey’s population, signaling a vast overrepresentation (+26.1%) in officeholding. 

White men are the only demographic group significantly overrepresented in the state’s 14-member congressional delegation. At the time of this report’s data collection in early 2024, white women were 27.1% of New Jersey’s population while only 7.1% of the delegation. The representation of Black women was near their population in the state while Black men exceeded it. At the time of data collection, Latinas, Asian American/Pacific Islander women, and Native American/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian men and women were completely absent at this level of office, meaning nearly a fifth of New Jersey’s population is not reflected in their congressional representation in our nation’s capital.

There were significant changes to congressional membership in New Jersey as a result of the November 2024 election, and these changes are important to include in this report. As of January 2025, Black women in Congress (14.3%) now exceeding their population in the state (8.9%). Latinas still do not match or exceed their population but have increased to one with the election of the first Latina to represent New Jersey in Congress, Nellie Pou (D).

At the state legislative level, white men remain significantly overrepresented. This pattern continues at the county level, where white men account for 51.7% of officeholders. The overrepresentation is most pronounced among mayors of cities with populations over 30,000, where 64.0% are white men, despite white men making up only 26.4% of the state’s population. Notably, 49% of New Jersey’s citizens live in cities with populations over 30,000.

Significant partisan differences emerge by race and gender. Across all levels of office (excluding municipal), white men and women account for 58.6% of all Democratic officeholders and 93.5% of Republican officeholders. At the state legislative level, 90.9% of Republican legislators are white. In contrast, among Democratic state legislators, 23.7% identify as Black, 14.5% identify as Latino/a, and 6.6% identify as Asian American/Pacific Islander. Gender disparities are also evident by party. Women make up 38.1% of Democratic officeholders and 24% of Republican officeholders across all levels. In the state legislature, women comprise 42% of the Democratic caucus and 20% of the Republican caucus.

As noted in the methodology section, data for race at the municipal level in this report was obtained using the voter file and has some limitations. Specifically, race could not be determined for 19.3% of officeholders (15.8% men and 3.5% women). In addition, the voter file only provided codes for Asian American/Pacific Islander, Black, Latino/a, and white officeholders. However, the available data tells a story that mirrors other levels of office in New Jersey. White men continue to be the only group overrepresented relative to their share of the population, holding 47.2% of municipal seats. It should be noted, however, that this is also the only level of office with incomplete race codes.

Aside from the municipal level, coding for race in this project follows CAWP’s current method for race data collection. Officeholders who identify as more than one race/ethnicity are included in each group with which they identify. As a result, percentages may not add up to 100% across levels. 

Recommendations

Building on the recommendations from our previous report, and keeping recommendations that remain evergreen, CAWP urges the following efforts to help ensure long-term sustainability of this data project:

• Mandating demographic data collection by the state: The legislature should pass updated legislation specifically mandating the collection of this demographic information about candidates and officeholders directly through the state and requiring the demographic data be made publicly available. For efficiency’s sake, this information could be part of the candidate filing process, in the same way name and address are required, as is done on notice of candidacy forms in the state of Louisiana.
• Administrative effort: Parallel to legislative efforts to mandate demographic data collection of candidates and elected officials, state government administrators must create mechanisms for official contact information and demographic data to be collected and transmitted to a secure database that is user-friendly and publicly available. Funding should be allocated to the department(s) responsible for the data collection and maintenance. Specifically, the state should invest in its technical capacity to house the collected demographic data in a public-facing database that is updated regularly.
• Utilize expertise: Outside organizations with data expertise should be contracted by the state to consult on the database structure, functionality, and security. In addition, organizations with data collection and research expertise, such as CAWP, should be tasked with providing context and analysis of the data, including releasing an annual report on the demographic status of New Jersey’s elected officials. The analysis will be significantly easier if a sustainable model for data collection is established through internal state processes as noted above.

Practical interventions will be necessary for long-term success in diversifying the state’s elected leadership. To that end, CAWP recommends:

• Top-down candidate recruitment by stakeholders: Having data about representation is the first step to the intentional work of recruiting, running, or nominating members of underrepresented groups for elective office. Stakeholders in candidate recruitment, including party leaders and current elected officials, should make a conscious effort to recruit diverse pools of candidates to run. A deeper understanding of the demographics of those who already serve will give stakeholders perspective on shortfalls in representation and help them adjust their recruitment strategies to broaden the field of potential candidates.
• Grassroots effort to flood the pipeline: While party and other political leaders must make a concerted effort to recruit diverse pools of candidates, community and grassroots efforts to flood the pipeline of potential candidates would help shift the status quo and place pressure on party leaders to pay attention to candidates outside the political fold. 
• Advocates for democratic processes should press for continued transparency on data about the state’s elected representation. The data must be regularly updated as new people are elected and those serving step down or lose elections. Without continual tracking, there is no way to measure progress or to flag backsliding.

Conclusion

The fundamental principles of democratic governance are predicated upon transparency, civic participation, and institutional accountability. A clearer picture of who represents the interests of citizens at the national, state, county, and local levels is crucial for inspiring more citizens to seek public leadership roles. Party leadership can use data to identify missing community perspectives and implement strategic efforts to diversify their candidate pools. Furthermore, the codification of transparency measures – specifically, the mandatory collection and public disclosure of demographic information pertaining to government leadership – constitutes an essential framework for maintaining the integrity of democratic institutions.

As noted in our first report, this research provides a comprehensive framework that can guide stakeholders – from academic researchers to advocacy groups to government administrators – both within New Jersey and across other states seeking to implement similar initiatives. The findings highlight practical recommendations while identifying key challenges that must be addressed to establish and maintain these essential demographic databases. To effectively monitor changes in gender and racial/ethnic representation among elected officials over time, standardized and streamlined data collection protocols are essential. The ultimate responsibility for this initiative should reside with state government, which must develop and maintain the necessary infrastructure, establish clear collection mechanisms, and commit to regular, systematic reporting of this demographic information. 

Acknowledgements

This project is made possible by the generous support of the New Jersey Legislature. Special thanks to the Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling (ECPIP) and Catalist for data support. 

About CAWP

The Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP), a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is nationally recognized as the leading source of scholarly research and current data about women’s political participation in the United States. Its mission is to promote greater knowledge and understanding about the role of women in American politics, enhance women's influence in public life, and expand the diversity of women in politics and government.

New Jersey Elected Officials Public Dataset (2024)

Click below to download the dataset referenced in the findings section. Data was collected and is as of early 2024 and includes congressional, state legislative, county, and municipal officials.

Download Database