Women’s Representation Will Fall in New Jersey Legislature

The number of women serving in the New Jersey Legislature will fall as a result of the 2025 elections, according to the latest data from the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP), a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University. Next year, 36 (31D, 5R) women will serve in the legislature, dropping from the 40 (32D, 8R) that currently serve, and 27 (24D, 3R) will serve in the General Assembly, falling from the 31 (25D, 6R) that serve today. Women will hold 30% of seats in the legislature next year and 33.8% of seats in the General Assembly. This will almost certainly lead to New Jersey falling in CAWP’s rankings of states by women’s representation in state legislatures, where the Garden State currently ranks 27th out of the 50 states. CAWP’s annual rankings of states will be updated early in 2026.

“These are dispiriting results for women in the Garden State and another reminder of the responsibility that the political parties in the state hold to recruit and champion women candidates, run them in winnable races, and support them when they are in office,” said CAWP Associate Director Jean Sinzdak. “It is also a reminder for all women in New Jersey that your state needs you, and there are resources available to you to begin your political journey. CAWP’s own Ready to Run® campaign training program for women is recruiting now.”

The net drop in women’s representation is the result of a variety of political outcomes: 

• One woman legislator retired: Shavonda Sumter (D).
• Three lost primary elections: Garnet Hall (D), Barbara McCann Stamato (D), and Jessica Ramirez (D).
• Three lost general elections: Michele Matsikoudis (R), Nancy Muñoz (R), Claire Swift (R)
• Meanwhile, three new women were elected: Katie Brennan (D), Maureen Rowan (D), and Marisa Sweeney (D).

Despite this decline, women candidates won two of five (40%) races that flipped partisan control of legislative seats from Republican to Democrat. For complete information on women in the 2025 elections, visit our Results for Women Candidates in Election 2025 analysis, and to see what’s coming in the 2026 midterm elections, head to The Buzz: 2026 Potential Women Candidates.