January 3, 2017 Women in the 115th Congress Kelly Dittmar, Ph.D. In 2017, 104 (78D, 26R) women hold seats in the U.S. Congress, comprising 19.4% of the 535 members; 21 (16D, 5R) women (21%) serve in the U.S. Senate and 83 (62D, 21R) women (19.1%) serve in the U.S. House of Representatives. This is the same total number of women that served in most of the 114th Congress, but there was a net loss of one woman in the House and a net gain of one woman in the Senate. After the November 2016 special election of Representative Colleen Hanabusa (D-HI), 105 women served in the 114th Congress, one more woman than serves in 2017. In addition, five non-voting women delegates (3D, 2R) represent American Samoa, Guam, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands this year; one is a newcomer to the 115th Congress. Percentage of Women in Congress, 1971-2017 100% 80% 60% 40% 19.6 19.4 18.5 19.4 18.5 16 16.8 16.8 16.6 15.3 20% 13.8 13.6 11.8 12.2 10 10.7 6 5.8 4.7 4.7 4.5 3.7 3.6 4.3 3 3.2 0% 2.8 Women Men Source: Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University Note: Data reflects the percentage of women at the end of each Congress, which includes women sworn in immediately after the November election. Percentage of Women in House and Senate, 1971-2017 25 20 15 10 5 0 Senate House Source: Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University Note: Data reflects the percentage of women at the end of each Congress, which includes women sworn in immediately after the November election. New Women Members of the 115th Congress There are fourteen women in 62-member freshman class of the 115th Congress. Ten non-incumbent women (8D, 2R), including former Representatives Colleen Hanabusa (D-HI) and Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH), were elected to the House, and four non-incumbent women (4D), including House member Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), were elected to the Senate in November 2016. This is the second highest number of new women elected in any one Congress, matching the numbers in the 111th, 112th, and 114th Congresses. Twenty-eight new women served in the 103rd Congress, which led to the designation of 1992 – the year of their election – as the “Year of the Woman.” Perhaps most notably, nine of the fourteen non- Non-Incumbent Women Entering Each Congress, incumbent women members of the 115th Congress are by Party women of color. Six new women of color serve in the House: Nannette Barragán (D-CA), Pramila Jayapal (D- 115th (2017-2019) 12 2 WA), Val Demings (D-FL), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), 114th (2015-2017) 7 7 Colleen Hanabusa (D-HI), and Stephanie Murphy (D-FL). 113th (2013-2015) 20 4 Three women of color joined Senator Mazie Hirono (D- 112th (2011-2013) 4 10 HI), the only woman of color to serve in the Senate in 111th (2009-2011) 11 3 the 114th Congress, in the Senate: Tammy Duckworth 110th (2007-2009) 10 2 (D-IL), Kamala Harris (D-CA), and Catherine Cortez- 109th (2005-2007) 5 3 Masto (D-NV). Republican Liz Cheney (R-WY) now serves 108th (2003-2005) 2 6 in the seat once held by her father, former Vice 107th (2001-2003) 7 3 President Dick Cheney. 106th (1999-2001) 6 1 105th (1997-1999) 9 3 Women are 18% of House freshman and 57% of 104th (1995-1997) 4 8 newcomers to the Senate in 2017. More specifically, 103rd (1993-1995) 25 3 women are 30% of House freshman Democrats, 7% of 102nd (1991-1993) 4 House freshman Republicans, and four of five new 101st (1989-1991) 2 Democratic senators. Both of the two new Republican 100th (1987-1989) 3 2 senators are men. 99th (1985-1987) 2 Non-Incumbent Women Entering the 115th House 98th (1983-1985) 3 2 Representative Nannette Barragán (D-CA44) 97th (1981-1983) 5 96th (1979-1981) 2 2 Representative Liz Cheney (R-WY AL) 95th (1977-1979) 2 Representative Val Demings (D-FL10) 94th (1975-1977) 4 2 Representative Colleen Hanabusa (D-HI1) 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA7) Representative Stephanie Murphy (D-FL7) Democrats Republicans Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE AL) Representative Jacky Rosen (D-NV3) Non-Incumbent Women Entering the 115th Senate Representative Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH1) Senator Catherine Cortez-Masto (D-NV) Representative Claudia Tenney (R-NY22) Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González (R-Puerto Rico) Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) Partisan Differences in Women’s Congressional Representation Proportion of Women in Each Party Caucus by Chamber, 2017 Women are just under one- 100% third (32.2%) of all 90% Democrats in the 115th 80% Congress, while Republican 70% 68.04 66.67 women are just nine percent 60% 91.18 90.39 Men 50% of all Republicans holding 1 Women 40% congressional seats in 2017. 30% This is not significantly 20% 31.96 33.33 different from the within- 10% party representation of 8.82 9.61 0% women in the 114th Congress. House Democrats House Republicans Senate Democrats Senate Republicans Source: Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University Proportion of Women in Each Party in Congress, 1981-2017 40 35 30 25 20 Percent 15 10 5 0 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Democrats Republicans Source: Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University Women of Color in the 115th Congress Thirty-eight women of color (35D, 3R) serve in the 115th Congress, as do four women of color (2D, 2R) who serve as delegates. Seven Asian/Pacific Islander women are House Democrats and two Asian-Pacific Islander women are Democratic members of the Senate. Kamala Harris, who identifies as both South Asian and Black, is a Democratic Senator. She joins Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) as the first South Asian women to serve in Congress. In addition to Harris, seventeen Black Democratic women and one Black Republican woman serve in the House. The lone Latina in the Senate, Democrat Catherine Cortez-Masto, is the first ever elected to the U.S. Senate. Nine more Latinas serve in the House, including seven Democrats and two Republicans. 1 This includes two Independent senators who caucus with the Democrats. Women’s Congressional Representation by State New Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester (D) is the first woman, and woman of color, to serve in Delaware’s congressional delegation. Delaware was one of three states that had sent only men to Congress as of 2016. In 2017, Mississippi and Vermont remain the only states that have never sent a woman to the U.S. Capitol. Senator Catherine Cortez-Masto is also the first woman, and first woman of color, whom Nevada has elected to the U.S. Senate. While California has elected multiple women to the U.S. Senate, Kamala Harris is the first woman of color the state has sent to the Senate. Likewise, Representative Pramila Jayapal is the first woman of color whom Washington has sent to Congress. States with Women in Congress, 2017 Thirteen states have no women representing them in the 115th Congress: AR, GA, ID, KY, LA, MD, MS, MT, OK, PA, RI, SC, VT. The Senate has three all-women delegations representing California, New Hampshire, and Washington, the same states that had two female Senators in the 114th Congress. Five states have only women serving in the House: Delaware (1 Representative), Hawaii (2 Representatives), New Hampshire (2 Representatives), South Dakota (1 Representative), and Wyoming (1 Representative). New Hampshire is the only state with an all-woman congressional delegation in 2017, and all of the members are Democrats. Source: Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University For More Information Find more information about the women in the 115th Congress and keep track of the latest numbers of women in elective office at all levels at http://www.cawp.rutgers.edu. There you can also find historical data on women candidates and officeholders. Follow CAWP on Facebook (facebook.com/womenandpolitics) and Twitter (@CAWP_RU) for the latest news and data on women’s political representation. .