State Legislature

Women in State Legislatures 2025

Women in State Legislative Leadership 2025

Women as a Percentage of Democratic and Republican State Legislators

State-by-state data on women as a percentage of Democratic and Republican state legislators.

Representativeness of Women State Legislators by Race/Ethnicity and State

State-by-state data on women’s state legislative representation by race/ethnicity compared to women’s representation in the population by race/ethnicity.  

Fact Sheet Archive on Women in State Legislatures (1977-present)

Women in State Legislative Elections: Historical State-by-State Summary

Historical information on women in State Legislative elections by state.

  • Women in State Government: Past, Present, Future

    by Susan J. Carroll
    Chapter in The Book of States, edited by the Council of State Governments, 2011

    In recent years, the movement of women into state-level offices has slowed following several decades of gains. Following the 2010 elections, the number of women in both state legislative and statewide elective office declined. Efforts to actively recruit women for elective and appointive positions will be critical in determining what the future holds for women in state government.

    Book Chapter
    Research
    CAWP Scholar
    State Legislature
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  • Can More Women Run? Reevaluating Women’s Election to the State Legislatures

    by Susan J. Carroll and Kira Sanbonmatsu
    Paper presented at the 2010 American Political Science Association annual meeting

    Do men and women take similar or different paths to public office? This paper examines the occupational and educational backgrounds, family situations, and prior political experiences of women state legislators and their male counterparts. 

    Conference Paper
    Research
    CAWP Scholar
    Candidates and Campaigns
    Candidate Recruitment
    State Legislature
    DownloadCan More Women Run? Reevaluating Women’s Election to the State Legislatures