Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
A Political Year Dominated by Women Faces Electoral Test
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
November 6, 2018

Share

WASHINGTON โ€” The midterm elections brought a surge of female candidates to ballots across the country. Now, in a year that has been defined by the political awakening and activism of women, Election Day is testing whether those women will reach record-breaking numbers in Congress and in governorโ€™s mansions across the country.

In the House, 237 women were on the ballot as major-party candidates. Women hold 84 out of 435 House seats, a record number. If more than 84 of those women candidates won on Tuesday, it would set a record for the number of women serving in the House.

Women also were on the ballot for governor in 16 states this year. There are six women governors, and the record is nine, which was reached in 2004 and 2007.

Diversity Among Women Candidates

โ€œThis isnโ€™t just the year of the woman, this is the year of every woman,โ€ said Cecile Richards, who served as the president of Planned Parenthood for more than a decade, noting the groundbreaking diversity among the women running for office this year.

Texas, for example, had a chance to send its first Hispanic woman to Congress. If Deb Haaland won her congressional race in New Mexico, she would become the first Native American woman elected to Congress. And if Democrat Kyrsten Sinema won in Arizona, she would become the countryโ€™s first openly bisexual senator.

โ€œIโ€™ve seen every year that we got another woman elected to the United States Senate, when each woman came in, every single woman in the United States Senate grew 5 inches taller,โ€ said Richards. โ€œWe know more women will be going to Congress โ€ฆ and there will be sisters waiting for them who will lift them up.โ€

Women hold 23 of the 100 U.S. Senate seats, and this year 23 women are on the ballot for the chamber. Ten women already in the Senate are not up for re-election.

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

UP NEXT

Giants Suffer Second Straight Shutout Loss to Reds

Dow Surges 2,600 as US Stocks Soar in Relief After Trump Pauses Some of His Tariffs

2 hours ago

Trump Pauses Tariffs on Most Nations for 90 Days, Raises Taxes on Chinese Imports

3 hours ago

This Is Fresno Unifiedโ€™s Last Chance to Get It Right: Editorial

We have a simple request of Fresno Unified trustees as they go about the all-important work of selecting the districtโ€™s next superinte...

7 minutes ago

7 minutes ago

This Is Fresno Unifiedโ€™s Last Chance to Get It Right: Editorial

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman speaks at a news conference in Los Angeles, Monday, March 10, 2025. (AP File)
32 minutes ago

California Youth Soccer Coach Accused of Killing 13-Year-Old, Assaulting Other Teens

FBI Director Kash Patel, joined at right by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, answers questions as the Senate Intelligence Committee holds its worldwide threats hearing, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
51 minutes ago

Kash Patel Has Been Replaced by Army Secretary Driscoll as Acting Head of the ATF

Anthony Matesic works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP/Seth Wenig)
2 hours ago

Dow Surges 2,600 as US Stocks Soar in Relief After Trump Pauses Some of His Tariffs

President Donald Trump speaks at the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) dinner at the National Building Museum in Washington, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (Pool via AP)
3 hours ago

Trump Pauses Tariffs on Most Nations for 90 Days, Raises Taxes on Chinese Imports

3 hours ago

Wired Wednesday: Fresno DA Warns New Copper Theft Ordinance Could Clash with State Law

3 hours ago

No Joke. Jay Leno Helps Fresno Legislator Advance Car Bill

3 hours ago

New Plan to Accelerate CA High-Speed Rail Construction Deserves Attention, Support

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend