What does the record number of all-woman congressional contests signal about gender dynamics of U.S. elections?

There will be more all-woman congressional contests on the ballot in November 2020 than ever before. With primaries yet to be decided in four states, women have already secured both Democratic and Republican major-party nominations in 51 contests for the U.S. House and Senate. That number will rise before Election Day and is significantly greater than the...

The Objectification of Women in Politics and Why it Matters

In January of 2019 the right-wing news outlet The Daily Caller published fake revenge-porn photographs of freshman Congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez. The headline read “Here’s the Photo Some People Described As A Nude Selfie of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.” Earlier this month, Pennsylvania Congresswoman Madeleine Dean posted a tweet highlighting the abusive...

Celebrating Suffrage, With Thanks to the Women Who Paved the Way

This month we celebrate the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage. The legal right of women to vote was established nationally in the United States with the passage of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in August 1920. Prior to the passage of 19th Amendment, women had the right to vote in various elections in a number of states and localities. While...

Introducing CAWP’s New Candidate Summaries and Databases

The Center for American Women and Politics recently rolled out newly revamped historical candidate summaries that provide information on women candidates at the state legislative, statewide elected executive, and congressional levels from 1990 to the present. They include interactive data visualizations and important summary information on both filed...

Women Sweep Primaries in Wyoming, Poised to Elect First Woman to the U.S. Senate

Congressional primaries were held on Tuesday in three states: Alaska, Florida, and Wyoming. Due to the reliance on mail-in voting, many races remain too close to call, so this post will be updated as results are determined. Full context about women in the 2020 elections, including candidate lists, summaries, results from previous primaries, and historical...

What You Need to Know About the Record Numbers of Women Candidates in 2020

With filing deadlines passed in all 50 states, the Center for American Women and Politics can confirm that more women are running for U.S. House and U.S. Senate in 2020 than ever. Putting these aggregate numbers into context offers additional insights into women’s candidacies over time, across parties, as well as clarifying racial and ethnic diversity in the...

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