Have Women State Legislators in the United States Become More Conservative?: A Comparison of State Legislators in 2001 and 1988

Carroll finds that: Women state legislators in the United States in 2001 are more liberal in their political ideology and policy attitudes than their male colleagues, just as they were in 1988. Nevertheless, a notable change is evident in the ideological predispositions of Republican Party women, especially in the lower houses of the legislatures. Republican women representatives in 2001 are more conservative and more like their male counterparts than they were in the late 1980s.

Article
Analysis
Officeholders
Candidates
State Legislature

Lobbying in New Jersey

This instructional handbook from 1978 describes the process of lobbying within a state legislative framework, listing resources from that time necessary to plan and carry out an effective lobbying campaign and explaining the legal requirements surrounding advocacy when the handbook was written. 

Report
New Jersey
Analysis
Officeholders
Activists
State Legislature

Profile of Women Holding Office II

CAWP produced the first-ever directories of U.S. elected women, who were surveyed in 1975 and 1977. The directories included names, addresses and background data. Each directory included a statistical essay, also published as stand-alone documents, examining the numbers, personal characteristics, political backgrounds, issue orientations, and ambitions of women in federal, state, county, and local government as reported in the surveys. 

Report
Analysis
Officeholders
State Legislature
Local
Statewide Executive
U.S. Congress

Profile of Women Holding Office I

CAWP produced the first-ever directories of U.S. elected women, who were surveyed in 1975 and 1977. The directories included names, addresses and background data. Each directory included a statistical essay, also published as stand-alone documents, examining the numbers, personal characteristics, political backgrounds, issue orientations, and ambitions of women in federal, state, county, and local government as reported in the surveys. 

Report
Analysis
Officeholders
State Legislature
Local
Statewide Executive
U.S. Congress

Women in State Government: Historical Overview and Current Trends

Women have significantly increased their numbers among state government officials over the past several decades. However, despite a recent increase in the number of women governors, women’s progress, especially at the statewide elective and state legislative levels, has slowed. The future for women in state government would seem to depend, at least in part, upon the strength of efforts to actively recruit women for elective and appointive positions.

Article
Analysis
Candidates
Officeholders
State Legislature
Statewide Executive

Preparedness Meets Opportunity: Women's Increased Representation in the New Jersey Legislature

This paper examines the factors that account for the rapid rise in the number of women legislators in New Jersey, focusing primarily on the time period from 2004 through 2011. Central to the analysis is the question of what it would take to bring about enduring change in a political system characterized by a strong, male-dominated party system like that found in New Jersey.

Report
New Jersey
Analysis
Officeholders
Candidates
State Legislature

Gender and the Decision to Run for the State Legislature

Carroll and Sanbonmatsu find important gender differences in the initial decision to seek state legislative office. They find that women are more likely than men to seek office because they were encouraged to run and that family and organizational support play a larger role in women’s candidacy decisions than in men’s. 

Conference Paper
Analysis
Officeholders
Candidates
State Legislature

Gender and Election to the State Legislatures: Then and Now

Carroll and Sanbonmatsu compare the background characteristics and experiences of women and men state legislators over time using data from the 2008 and 1981 CAWP Recruitment Studies. 

Conference Paper
Analysis
Candidates
Officeholders
State Legislature

Can More Women Run? Reevaluating Women’s Election to the State Legislatures

Do men and women take similar or different paths to public office? This paper examines the occupational and educational backgrounds, family situations, and prior political experiences of women state legislators and their male counterparts. 

Conference Paper
Analysis
Candidates
State Legislature
Subscribe to State Legislature