Women in State Legislatures 2024

Number and Percentage of Women in State Legislatures, 1980-2024

Current State Legislature
2,423
(1,584D, 813R, 21NP, 5Ind)
32.8% of 7,386 seats

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

State Senate
588
(380D, 189R, 18NP, 1Ind)
29.8% of 1,973 seats
Full list of officeholders
State House/Assembly
1,835
(1,204D, 624R, 3NP, 4Ind)
33.9% of 5,413 seats
Full list of officeholders
Party Breakdown
Party Total Legislators State Senators State Representatives
Democrats 1,584 (65.4%) 380 (64.6%) 1,204 (65.6%)
Republicans 813 (33.6%) 189 (32.1%) 624 (34.1%)
Nonpartisans* 21 (0.7%) 18 (3.1%) 3 (0.2%)
Independents 5 (0.2%) 1 (0.2%) 4 (0.2%)
Progressives 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%)
TOTAL 2,423 (100%) 588 (100%) 1,835 (100%)

*In Nebraska, where the legislature is unicameral, legislators are elected on a nonpartisan basis.

Top 10 States

Nevada (60.3%)
Arizona (50.0%)
Colorado (49.0%)
Vermont (45.0%)
Washington (44.9%)
New Mexico (43.8%)
Illinois (42.9%)
Maryland (42.6%)
Rhode Island (42.5%)
Maine (42.5%)

Bottom 10 States

West Virginia (11.9%)
Tennessee (15.2%)
Mississippi (15.5%)
South Carolina (15.9%)
Alabama (17.9%)
Oklahoma (19.5%)
Wyoming (21.5%)
Arkansas (23.0%)
Louisiana (23.6%)
Utah (26.9%)

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.

Overall Legislature
3

Current:
Arizona, first hit in 2023 (majority-woman)
Nevada, first hit in 2018 (majority-woman)

Past:
Colorado, first hit in 2023 (gender parity)
 

Senate Only
4

Current:
Arizona, first hit in 2021 (majority-woman)
Nevada, first hit in 2023 (majority-woman)
New Hampshire, first hit in 2023 (gender parity)

Past:
New Hampshire, first hit in 2009 (majority-woman)
Rhode Island, first hit in 2021 (gender parity)

House/Assembly Only
5

Current:
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)

State Legislators by Race and Ethnicity

*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.

More information on State Legislators by Race and Ethnicity.

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 
  • 1,725 identify as white

 

State Legislative Leadership

More information on women in state legislative leadership

Current Women Presidents or Presidents Pro Tem of Senates
15
(11D, 4R)

Kathleen Passidomo (R-FL)
Michelle Kidani (D-HI)
Amy Sinclair (R-IA)
Regina Ashford Barrow (D-LA)
Karen Spilka (D-MA)
Ann H. Rest (D-MN)
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)
Karen Keiser (D-WA)
Donna J. Boley (R-WV)

Current Women Speakers of State Houses
10
(9D, 1R)

Cathy Tilton (R-AK)
Julie McCluskie (D-CO)
Valerie Longhurst (D-DE)
Adrienne Jones (D-MD)
Rachel Talbot Ross (D-ME)
Melissa Hortman (D-MN)
Julie Fahey (D-OR)
Joanna McClinton (D-PA)
Jill Krowinski (D-VT)
Laurie Jinkins (D-WA)

Current Women in D.C. and Territorial Legislatures
48
(15D, 2R, 5Ind, 2NP, 8PNP, 11PPD, 5 Third Party)

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.

Territorial Senate
17
(2D, 1Ind, 1NP, 5PNP, 5PPD, 3 Third Party)
Territorial House/Assembly
15
(1D, 2Ind, 1NP, 3PNP, 6PPD, 2 Third Party)
Territorial Unicameral Legislatures
16
(12D, 2R, 2I)

(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.

Women in State Legislatures 2024
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 25 2D, 3R 5/20 7D, 6R, 2Ind 15/40 20/60 33.3
AZ 2 11D, 5R 16/30 20D, 9R 29/60 45/90 50.0
AR 43 2D, 3R 5/35 10D, 16R 26/100 31/135 23.0
AS N/A 1Ind** 1/18 1 1/21 2/39 5.1
CA 11 14D, 4R 18/40 27D, 5R 32/80 50/120 41.7
CO 3 11D, 2R 13/35 31D, 5R 36/65 49/100 49.0
CT 16 10D, 2R 12/36 39D, 19R 58/151 70/187 37.4
DC N/A 4D, 1Ind 5/13 n/a -unicameral- 5/13 38.5
DE 17 8D, 0R 8/21 14D, 1R 15/41 23/62 37.1
FL 12 7D, 9R 16/40 25D, 15R 50/120 66/160 41.3
GA 22 14D, 2R 16/56 46D, 20R 66/180 82/236 34.7
GU N/A 4D, 2R 6/15 n/a -unicameral- 6/15 40.0
HI* 18 7D, 0R 7/25 19D, 2R 21/51 28/76 36.8
ID* 33 4D, 6R 10/35 5D, 16R 21/70 31/105 29.5
IL 7 19D, 5R 24/59 45D, 7R 52/118 76/177 42.9
IN 39 3D, 7R 10/50 15D, 16R 31/100 41/150 27.3
IA 36 8D, 6R 14/50 16D, 13R 29/100 43/150 28.7
KS 26 7D, 10R 17/40 19D, 18R 37/125 54/165 32.7
KY 29 4D, 5R 9/38 15D, 19R 34/100 43/138 31.2
LA 42 2D, 3R 5/39 11D, 18R 29/105 34/144 23.6
ME* 9 11D, 3R 14/35 46D, 19R 65/151 79/186 42.5
MD 8 14D, 1R 15/47 58D, 7R 65/141 80/188 42.6
MA 31 11D, 0R 11/40 45D, 3R, 1Ind 49/160 60/200 30.0
MI 14 12D, 3R 15/38 32D, 12R 44/110 59/148 39.9
MN* 18 19D, 3R 22/67 35D, 17R 52/134 74/201 36.8
MS 48 2D, 7R 9/52 7D, 9R, 2I 18/122 27/174 15.5
MO 37 4D, 6R 10/34 28D, 17R 45/163 55/197 27.9
MP N/A 2D, 1Ind 3/9 1D, 2I 3/20 6/29 20.7
MT 27 10D, 4R 14/50 15D, 19R 34/100 48/150 32.0
NE 20 18NP 18/49 n/a -unicameral- 18/49 36.7
NV 1 9D, 4R 13/21 20D, 5R 25/42 38/63 60.3
NH 15 7D, 5R 12/24 98D, 48R, 1NP 147/400 159/424 37.5
NJ 24 8D, 2R 10/40 25D, 6R 31/80 41/120 34.2
NM 6 10D, 1R 11/42 31D, 7R 38/70 49/112 43.8
NY 23 17D, 3R 20/63 50D, 3R 53/150 73/213 34.3
NC 32 13D, 4R 17/50 24D, 10R 34/120 51/170 30.0
ND 40 1D, 7R 8/47 9D, 21R 30/94 38/141 27.0
OH 35 3D, 5R 8/33 13D, 17R 30/99 38/132 28.8
OK 45 5D, 5R 10/48 10D, 9R 19/101 29/149 19.5
OR 13 7D, 2R 9/30 17D, 10R 27/60 36/90 40.0
PA 28 8D, 9R 17/50 36D, 27R 63/203 80/253 31.6
PR N/A 13Ind 13/27 n/a 11Ind 24/78 30.8
RI* 9 13D, 2R 15/38 30D, 3R 33/75 48/113 42.5
SC 47 2D, 3R, 1nd 6/46 9D, 12R 21/124 27/170 15.9
SD 38 2D, 5R 7/35 4D, 18R 22/70 29/105 27.6
TN 49 5D, 3R 8/33 3D, 9R 12/99 20/132 15.2
TX 30 5D, 4R 9/31 32D, 15R 47/150 56/181 30.9
UT 41 5D, 2R 7/29 8D, 13R 21/75 28/104 26.9
VI N/A 4D, 1Ind 5/16 n/a -unicameral- 5/16 31.3
VT 4 12D, 0R 12/30 58D, 10R, 1Ind 69/150 81/180 45.0
VA 21 11D, 4R 15/40 27D, 7R 34/100 49/140 35.0
WA 5 14D, 5R 19/49 35D, 12R 47/98 66/147 44.9
WV 50 0D, 4R 4/34 2D, 10R 12/100 16/134 11.9
WI* 33 4D, 3R 7/33 19D, 13R 32/99 39/132 29.5
WY 44 0D, 7R 7/31 3D, 10R 13/62 20/93   21.5

* States share the same rank if their proportions of women legislators are exactly equal or round off to be equal (HI, MN; ID, WI; ME, RI).
** Ind = other parties; in the Senate, 18 non-partisans, 1 Independent; in the House, 3 non-partisans, 4 Independents.