Facts About Women Legislators

Women in Elective Office 2010

In 2010, 90 women serve in the U.S. Congress. Seventeen women serve in the Senate, and 73 women serve in the House. The number of women in statewide elective executive posts is 73, while the proportion of women in state legislatures is at 24.3 percent.

Congress:

Women hold 90, or 16.8%, of the 535 seats in the 111th US Congress - 17, or 17.0%, of the 100 seats in the Senate and 73, or 16.8%, of the 435 seats in the House of Representatives.

Statewide Elective Executive:

72 women hold statewide elective executive offices across the country; women hold 22.9% of the 315 available positions. Among these women, 50 are Democrats, 21 are Republicans, one is an independent, and 1 was elected in a nonpartisan race.

  • Women in Elective Office 2010 (PDF)
    Fact sheet with current numbers and percentage of women elected officials in U.S. Congress, statewide elective executive offices, state legislatures and municipal offices. Also includes summary of percentages of women in office at various levels from 1979 to current.

State Legislature:

In 2010, 1,797, or 24.3%, of the 7,382 state legislators in the United States are women. Women hold 435, or 22.1%, of the 1,971 state senate seats and 1,362, or 25.2%, of the 5,411 state house seats. Since 1971, the number of women serving in state legislatures has more than quintupled.

*Research conducted by the Center for American Women and Politics, Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University.