Congress, Statewide, State Legislature, Mayors
Access information on the history of women of color in elective office.
Vice President
Kamala Harris (D) currently serves as Vice President. She is the first woman of color, the first Black person, and the first South Asian person elected to this office.
Of the 143 women serving in the 117th U.S. Congress, 49, or 34.3%, are women of color; in addition, a Black woman, a Latina, an Asian Pacific Islander, and a Caribbean American woman serve as Delegates to the House from Washington, DC, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the Virgin Islands, respectively. Women of color constitute 9.2% of the total 535 members of Congress. The record high for women of color serving in Congress was 52, set between January 3, 2021, and January 18, 2021.
Of the 95 women serving in statewide elective executive offices, 18, or 18.9%, are women of color. Women of color constitute 5.8% of the total 310 statewide elective executives. The record high for women of color serving in statewide elective executive office was 19, set between April 14, 2021 and July 5, 2021.
Women of color are 26.5% of the 2,288 women state legislators serving nationwide. They constitute 8.2% of the total 7,383 state legislators. In addition, there are 31 women of color serving in the legislatures of the U.S. Territories (American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands) and on the D.C. City Council. The record high for women of color serving in state legislatures was 607, set between June 22, 2021 and June 30, 2021.
Women of color serve in every state.
- Black women serve in 42 states, all except AZ, HI, ID, MT, NE, SD, ND, VT.
- Asian Pacific Islander women serve in 22 states; CA, CT, GA, HI, ID, IL, KY, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, NH, NY, OH, OR, PA, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI.
- Latina women serve in 25 states; AZ, CA, CO, CT, DE, FL GA, IL, KS, MA, MN, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OR, RI, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI, WV, WY.
- Middle Eastern/North African women serve in 5 states; CO, FL, MD, NH, NY.
- Native American/Alaska Native women serve in 12 states; AK, AZ, KS, MN, MS, MT, ND, NM, OR, SD, WA, WY.
- Multi-Racial women serve in 21 states; AR, AZ, HI, ID, IL, KS, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, NE, NM, NV, NY, OK, RI, TX, VA, VT, WA.
In the nation's 100 largest cities, fourteen women of color currently serve as mayors.