Number and Percentage of Women in State Legislatures, 1980-2025
Since 1971, the number of women serving in state legislatures has more than quintupled.
NP = non-partisan, Ind = Independent, Prg = Progressive
State-by-State Summary Data on Current Women State Legislators
| Party | Total Legislators | State Senators | State Representatives |
|---|---|---|---|
| Democrats | 1,583 (64.1%) | 387 (64.8%) | 1,196 (63.8%) |
| Republicans | 866 (35.0%) | 196 (32.8%) | 670 (35.8%) |
| Nonpartisans* | 17 (0.7%) | 14 (2.3%) | 3 (0.2%) |
| Independents | 5 (0.2%) | 0 (0%) | 5 (0.3%) |
| Progressives | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) |
| TOTAL | 2,471 (100%) | 597 (100%) | 1,874 (100%) |
*In Nebraska, where the legislature is unicameral, legislators are elected on a nonpartisan basis.
Nevada (61.9%)
New Mexico (53.6%)
Colorado (52.0%)
California (48.3%)
Arizona (47.8%)
Oregon (45.6%)
Washington (44.9%)
Illinois (43.5%)
Alaska (43.3%)
Vermont (43.3%)
West Virginia (11.9%)
South Carolina (12.9%)
Mississippi (14.9%)
Tennessee (17.4%)
Alabama (18.6%)
Arkansas (20.7%)
Oklahoma (22.8%)
Louisiana (23.6%)
Wyoming (25.8%)
North Dakota (26.2%)
Majority-Woman and Gender Parity Legislatures and Chambers
Lists below distinguish between states that have already achieved gender parity (50% women) or majority-woman status (women >50%) in the state legislature as a whole and/or within a single state legislative chamber. Counts indicate the total number of states that have achieved this status in the past and/or at present.
Current:
Colorado, first hit in 2025 (majority-woman)
Nevada, first hit in 2018 (majority-woman)
New Mexico, first hit in 2023 (majority-woman)
Past:
Arizona, first hit in 2023 (majority-woman)
Colorado, first hit in 2023 (gender parity)
Current:
Arizona, first hit in 2021 (majority-woman)
California, first hit in 2025 (majority-woman)
Nevada, first hit in 2023 (majority-woman)
Past:
New Hampshire, first hit in 2009 (majority-woman)
New Hampshire, first hit in 2023 (gender parity)
Rhode Island, first hit in 2021 (gender parity)
Current:
Alaska, first hit in 2025 (majority-woman)
Colorado, first hit in 2019 (majority-woman)
Nevada, first hit in 2018 (majority-woman)
New Mexico, first hit in 2021 (majority-woman)
Past:
Arizona, first hit in 2024 (gender parity)
Oregon, first hit in 2021 (majority-woman)
*Women who self-identify as more than one race/ethnicity are included on CAWP pages for each group with which they identify. We strongly caution against adding totals from each racial/ethnic group should, as it will double count officeholders. This figure does not include 27 legislators whose race/ethnicity we could not confirm.
2025 State Legislative numbers will be updated in the spring as we collect data.
Of the 2,423 current women state legislators:
- 98 identify as Asian American/Pacific Islander
- 386 identify as Black
- 191 identify as Latina
- 14 identify as Middle Eastern/North African
- 3 identify as Multiracial Alone
- 36 identify as Native American/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian
- 1,724 identify as white
State Legislative Leadership
Dafna Michaelson Janet (D-CO)
Michelle Kidani (D-HI)
Amy Sinclair (R-IA)
Regina Ashford Barrow (D-LA)
Karen Spilka (D-MA)
Matthea Daughtry (D-ME)
Ann H. Rest (D-MN)
Cindy O'Laughlin (R-MO)
Sharon M. Carson (R-NH)
Shirley Turner (D-NJ)
Mimi Stewart (D-NM)
Pat Spearman (D-NV)
Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-NY)
Kim L. Ward (R-PA)
Hanna M. Gallo (D-RI)
Louise Lucas (D-VA)
Mary J. Felzkowski (R-WI)
Donna J. Boley (R-WV)
Julie McCluskie (D-CO)
Melissa Minor-Brown (D-DE)
Nadine Nakamura (D-HI)
Adrienne Jones (D-MD)
Lisa Demuth (R-MN)
Julie Fahey (D-OR)
Joanna McClinton (D-PA)
Jill Krowinski (D-VT)
Laurie Jinkins (D-WA)
Count includes women legislators in U.S. Territories (American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands) and on the D.C. City Council. PNP stands for Partido Nuevo Progresista, or the New Progressive Party, and PPD stands for Partido Popular Democratico, or the Popular Democratic Party, both parties specific to Puerto Rico.
(Washington D.C., Guam, Virgin Islands)
| Location | Total Women | Total Legislature | % Women Overall |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Samoa | 2 (2NP) | 39 | 5.1% |
| District of Columbia | 5 (4D, 1Ind) | 13 | 38.5% |
| Guam | 6 (4D, 2R) | 15 | 40.0% |
| Northern Mariana Islands | 6 (3D, 3Ind) | 29 | 20.7% |
| Puerto Rico | 24 (8PNP, 11PPD, 5 Third Party)* | 78 | 30.8% |
| Virgin Islands | 5 (4D, 1Ind) | 16 | 31.3% |
State Legislative Firsts
- 1894: The first three women elected to a state legislature in the country were Clara Cressingham, Carrie C. Holly, and Frances Klock, all in the Colorado House of Representatives.
- 1896: Martha Hughes Cannon (D-UT) became the first woman elected state senator in the country.
- 1924: Cora Belle Reynolds Anderson (R-MI) became the first woman of color elected to a state legislature.
- 1933: Minnie Davenport Craig (R-ND) became the first woman to serve as speaker of a state house.
- 1974: Elaine Noble (D-MA) became the first openly LGBT candidate elected to a state legislature.
- 1983: Vesta Roy (R-NH) became the first woman to serve as president of a state senate.
- 2007: Colleen Hanabusa (D-HI) became the first woman of color to serve as president of a state senate.
- 2008: Karen Bass (D-CA) became the first woman of color to serve as speaker of a state house.
- 2011: Margarita Prentice (D) became Senate President Pro Tempore of the Washington Senate, the first Latina to lead either chamber of a state legislature.
- 2013:Tina Kotek (D-OR) became the country's first openly lesbian state House speaker.
- 2017: Twenty-five years after Althea Garrison's election and non-consensual outing, Danica Roem (D-VA) became the first openly transgender person to be elected and to serve in a state legislature in the United States.
- 2019: Nevada became the first state to have women hold a majority of state legislative seats (32 of 63, or 50.8%).
For other important state legislative firsts, visit the Milestones for Women in American Politics page.
| State | State Rank | Senate | Total Women/Total Senate | House | Total Women/Total House | Total Women/Total Legislators | %Women Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AL | 46 | 3D, 1R | 4/35 | 11D, 11R | 22/105 | 26/140 | 18.6 |
| AK* | 9 | 2D, 3R | 5/20 | 9D, 10R, 2Ind | 21/40 | 26/60 | 43.3 |
| AZ | 5 | 11D, 5R | 16/30 | 18D, 9R | 27/60 | 43/90 | 47.8 |
| AR | 45 | 2D, 3R | 5/35 | 8D, 15R | 23/100 | 28/135 | 20.7 |
| AS | N/A | 1Ind** | 1/18 | 1 | 1/21 | 2/39 | 5.1 |
| CA | 4 | 16D, 5R | 21/40 | 31D, 6R | 37/80 | 58/120 | 48.3 |
| CO | 3 | 11D, 3R | 14/35 | 31D, 7R | 38/65 | 52/100 | 52.0 |
| CT* | 22 | 10D, 1R | 11/36 | 39D, 15R | 54/151 | 65/187 | 34.8 |
| DC | N/A | 4D, 1Ind | 5/13 | n/a | -unicameral- | 5/13 | 38.5 |
| DE* | 17 | 6D, 0R | 6/21 | 16D, 1R | 17/41 | 23/62 | 37.1 |
| FL | 11 | 7D, 8R | 15/40 | 21D, 33R | 54/120 | 69/160 | 43.1 |
| GA* | 24 | 12D, 1R | 13/56 | 48D, 20R | 68/180 | 81/236 | 34.3 |
| GU | N/A | 4D, 2R | 6/15 | n/a | -unicameral- | 6/15 | 40.0 |
| HI | 14 | 7D, 1R | 8/25 | 20D, 3R | 23/51 | 31/76 | 40.8 |
| ID* | 39 | 4D, 8R | 12/35 | 5D, 11R | 16/70 | 28/105 | 26.7 |
| IL | 8 | 19D, 5R | 24/59 | 45D, 8R | 53/118 | 77/177 | 43.5 |
| IN* | 39 | 3D, 7R | 10/50 | 15D, 15R | 30/100 | 40/150 | 26.7 |
| IA | 38 | 7D, 7R | 14/50 | 14D, 13R | 27/100 | 41/150 | 27.3 |
| KS | 30 | 6D, 7R | 13/40 | 20D, 21R | 41/125 | 54/165 | 32.7 |
| KY | 35 | 4D, 4R | 8/38 | 13D, 20R | 33/100 | 41/138 | 29.7 |
| LA | 43 | 2D, 3R | 5/39 | 11D, 18R | 29/105 | 34/144 | 23.6 |
| ME* | 12 | 12D, 3R | 15/35 | 41D, 22R, 1NP | 64/151 | 79/186 | 42.5 |
| MD | 15 | 13D, 1R | 14/47 | 55D, 7R | 62/141 | 76/188 | 40.4 |
| MA | 32 | 10D, 1R | 11/40 | 47D, 3R, 1I | 51/160 | 62/200 | 31.0 |
| MI | 16 | 11D, 3R | 14/38 | 29D, 15R | 44/110 | 58/148 | 39.2 |
| MN | 19 | 18D, 3R | 21/67 | 37D, 16R | 53/134 | 74/201 | 36.8 |
| MS | 48 | 2D, 6R | 8/52 | 7D, 9R, 2I | 18/122 | 26/174 | 14.9 |
| MO | 36 | 6D, 4R | 10/34 | 27D, 20R | 47/163 | 57/197 | 28.9 |
| MP | N/A | 2D, 1Ind | 3/9 | 1D, 2I | 3/20 | 6/29 | 20.7 |
| MT | 26 | 11D, 5R | 16/50 | 18D, 17R | 35/100 | 51/150 | 34.0 |
| NE | 37 | 14NP | 14/49 | n/a | -unicameral- | 14/49 | 28.6 |
| NV | 1 | 9D, 4R | 13/21 | 19D, 7R | 26/42 | 39/63 | 61.9 |
| NH | 20 | 5D, 5R | 10/24 | 82D, 60R | 142/400 | 152/424 | 35.8 |
| NJ* | 28 | 7D, 2R | 9/40 | 25D, 6R | 31/80 | 40/120 | 33.3 |
| NM | 2 | 13D, 3R | 16/42 | 33D, 11R | 44/70 | 60/112 | 53.6 |
| NY* | 24 | 19D, 3R | 22/63 | 48D, 3R | 51/150 | 73/213 | 34.3 |
| NC | 34 | 12D, 4R | 16/50 | 26D, 9R | 35/120 | 51/170 | 30.0 |
| ND | 41 | 1D, 8R | 9/47 | 9D, 19R | 28/94 | 37/141 | 26.2 |
| OH* | 22 | 4D, 6R | 10/33 | 17D, 19R | 36/99 | 46/132 | 34.8 |
| OK | 44 | 6D, 8R | 14/48 | 10D, 10R | 20/101 | 34/149 | 22.8 |
| OR | 6 | 8D, 3R | 11/30 | 20D, 10R | 30/60 | 41/90 | 45.6 |
| PA | 31 | 9D, 10R | 19/50 | 37D, 26R | 63/203 | 82/253 | 32.4 |
| PR | N/A | 13Ind | 13/27 | n/a | 11Ind | 24/78 | 30.8 |
| RI* | 12 | 15D, 2R | 17/38 | 29D, 2R | 31/75 | 48/113 | 42.5 |
| SC | 49 | 2D, 0R | 2/46 | 8D, 12R | 20/124 | 22/170 | 12.9 |
| SD* | 17 | 2D, 10R | 12/35 | 4D, 23R | 27/70 | 39/105 | 37.1 |
| TN | 47 | 5D, 3R | 8/33 | 5D, 10R | 15/99 | 23/132 | 17.4 |
| TX | 27 | 4D, 4R | 8/31 | 33D, 20R | 53/150 | 61/181 | 33.7 |
| UT | 33 | 5D, 2R | 7/29 | 10D, 15R | 25/75 | 32/104 | 30.8 |
| VI | N/A | 4D, 1Ind | 5/16 | n/a | -unicameral- | 5/16 | 31.3 |
| VT* | 9 | 10D, 0R | 10/30 | 52D, 14R, 2Ind | 68/150 | 78/180 | 43.3 |
| VA | 21 | 11D, 4R | 15/40 | 27D, 7R | 34/100 | 49/140 | 35.0 |
| WA | 7 | 17D, 3R | 20/49 | 35D, 11R | 46/98 | 66/147 | 44.9 |
| WV | 50 | 0D, 5R | 5/34 | 2D, 9R | 11/100 | 16/134 | 11.9 |
| WI* | 28 | 8D, 2R | 10/33 | 26D, 8R | 34/99 | 44/132 | 33.3 |
| WY | 42 | 0D, 7R | 7/31 | 3D, 14R | 17/62 | 24/93 | 25.8 |
* States share the same rank if their proportions of women legislators are exactly equal or round off to be equal (AK, VT; CT, OH; RI, ME; SD, DE; GA, NY; NJ, WI; ID, IN).
** Ind = other parties; in the Senate, 14 non-partisans; in the House, 3 non-partisans, 5 Independents.