Expected Changes Based on the Virginia Special Election

State Senator Jennifer McClellan is expected to win tomorrow’s special election in Virginia’s 4th congressional district. The Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP), a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University, provides updated data on women’s representation in the 118th Congress in the event of her win and upon her swearing-in:
- 150 (107D, 42R, 1Ind) women will serve in the U.S. Congress, holding 28% of seats. This is a new record and surpasses by one the previous record, set at the swearing-in of the 118th Congress.
- 125 (92D, 33R) women will serve in the U.S. House, holding 28.7% of seats. This is likewise a new record and surpasses by one the previous record, set at the swearing in of the 118th Congress.
- 107 Democratic women will serve in Congress, matching the record set in 2022. Women will hold 41% of Democratic seats in Congress.
- 92 Democratic women will serve in the House. This is a new record and surpasses by one the previous record, which was set in 2022. Women will hold 43.2% of Democratic seats in the House.
- 28 Black women will serve in Congress. This is a new record and surpasses by one the previous record, set at the swearing-in of the 118th Congress.
- 28 Black women will serve in the House. This is a new record and surpasses by one the previous record, set at the swearing-in of the 118th Congress.
In addition, Jennifer McClellan would be the first Black woman to represent Virginia in Congress.
For the most up-to-date information on women serving in Congress, see CAWP’s fact sheet, Women in the U.S. Congress 2023; this page will update when the new representative for this district is sworn in. See part one of our report on the 2022 elections, Women in Election 2022: Marking Midterm Progress, for additional data and analysis about women serving in the 118th Congress.
Contact
Daniel De Simone: ddesimone@eagleton.rutgers.edu; 760.703.0948