Women in Office 2021

With swearing-in ceremonies in statehouses around the country now complete, as well as the inauguration of America’s first woman vice president, the Center for American Women and Politics, a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University, shares the most up-to-date information and resources about women serving in political office in 2021. These resources include our state-bystate interactive map with information about women serving statewide and in state legislative offices in every state, as well as our regularly-updated rankings of states by women’s representation in state legislatures. All of this new data is also reflected in the most recent update to the CAWP Women Elected Officials Database, a one-of-a-kind searchable tool with entries for each of the more than 11,500 women who have served in state legislative, statewide elected executive, and federal offices from 1893 to the present. Current Numbers • Current Numbers This page contains an overview of women serving at all levels of office, from the vice presidency to mayoralties. Women of Color • Women of Color in Elective Office 2021 This page contains an overview of women of color serving at all levels of office, from the vice presidency to mayoralties. Federal Executive • Women in Federal Executive Office Vice President Kamala Harris became the first woman to serve in this position when she was inaugurated on January 20, 2021. • High-Level Presidential Appointments 12 of the 25 people nominated or already confirmed to serve in Cabinet and Cabinet-level positions in the Biden-Harris administration are women; 8 of those 12 are women of color. This page also includes women serving in other high-level staff positions in the Biden administration. • Women Appointed to Presidential Cabinets This fact sheet provides historical information about women serving in presidential Cabinets from 1933 to the present.

Current Numbers

• Current Numbers This page contains an overview of women serving at all levels of office, from the vice presidency to mayoralties.

Women of Color

• Women of Color in Elective Office 2021 This page contains an overview of women of color serving at all levels of office, from the vice presidency to mayoralties.

Federal Executive

• Women in Federal Executive Office Vice President Kamala Harris became the first woman to serve in this position when she was inaugurated on January 20, 2021.
• High-Level Presidential Appointments 12 of the 25 people nominated or already confirmed to serve in Cabinet and Cabinet-level positions in the Biden-Harris administration are women; 8 of those 12 are women of color. This page also includes women serving in other high-level staff positions in the Biden administration.
• Women Appointed to Presidential Cabinets This fact sheet provides historical information about women serving in presidential Cabinets from 1933 to the present.

U.S. Congress*

^{* The numbers throughout the U.S. Congress section are as of January 26, 2021. We expect them to decrease by 2 (2D) with the confirmation of Democratic Representatives Marcia Fudge and Deb Haaland to Cabinet positions. Because Fudge is Black and Haaland is Native American, this will also affect the number of women of color serving in the House. There is also one outstanding House race in New York (NY-22) that is still too close to call which could add one more Republican woman (Claudia Tenney). Finally, Republican Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks has been provisionally seated in the House to represent IA-02, but that result is being challenged by her opponent, Democrat Rita Hart. If the Committee on House Administration reverses the result, that would add one Democratic woman and reduce the number of Republican women by one in the House and in Congress overall.}

• Women in the U.S. Congress 2021
  • On this page, find latest numbers for women serving in the U.S. Congress, as well as historical information and milestones on women in Congress.
  • Current numbers:
    • 142 (105D, 37R) women hold seats in the Congress, comprising 26.5% of the 535 members.
    • 51 (46D, 5R) of the 142 women in Congress in 2021 are women of color: 24 (24D) Black women, 13 (11D, 2R) Latinas, 9 (7D, 2R) Asian and/or Pacific Islander women, 2 (2D) Native American women, 1 (1D) Middle Eastern/North African woman, and 2 (1D, 1R) multiracial women.

• Women in the U.S. Senate 2021
  • On this page, find latest numbers for women serving in the U.S. Senate, as well as historical information and milestones on women in the Senate.
  • Current numbers:
    • 24 (16D, 8R) women serve in the Senate, comprising 24% of the 100 members.
    • 3 (3D) of the 24 women in the Senate are women of color: 2 (2D) Asian and/or Pacific Islander women and 1 Latina.

• Women in the U.S. House of Representatives 2021
  • On this page, find latest numbers for women serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as historical information and milestones on women in the House.
  • Current numbers:
    • 118 (89D, 29R) women hold seats in the House of Representatives, comprising 27.1% of the 435 members in 2021.
    • 48 (43D, 5R) of the 118 women in the House are women of color: 24 (24D) Black women, 12 (10D, 2R) Latinas, 7 (5D, 2R) Asian and/or Pacific Islander women , 2 (2D) Native American women, 1 (1D) Middle Eastern/North African woman, and 2 (1D, 1R) multi-racial women.

The States

• State by State Information At this interactive map, see how women fare in your state and follow links to complete current and historical information on women in elected office in every state.
• Women in State Legislatures 2021
  • On this page, find current and historical information about women in state legislatures, as well as CAWP’s state rankings based on women’s representation in state legislatures. Nevada once again claims the top spot with a majority (58.7%) of its state legislative seats held by women. West Virginia, meanwhile, is ranked 50th, with women holding just 11.9% of its state legislative seats.
  • Current numbers:
    • 2,274 (1,506D, 747R, 13NP, 6I, 2P), or 30.8%, of the 7,383 state legislators in the U.S. are women.
    • 555 (359D, 183R, 13NP) of the country’s state senators are women.
    • 1,719 (1,147D, 564R, 6I, 2P) of the country’s state representatives are women.

• Women in Statewide Elective Executive Office 2021
  • This page contains current data on women in statewide elected executive office, as well as historical information about women governors and a link to historical information in all statewide elected executive office.
  • Current numbers:
    • 9 women (6D, 3R) serve as governors in 2021. This number is expected to decrease by one Democrat upon the confirmation of Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo as commerce secretary.
    • 94 (51D, 41R, 2NP) women hold statewide elective executive offices, including governorships, across the country; women hold 30.3% of the 310 available positions.
    • Of the 94 women, 17 (18.1%) are women of color.