Women in Statewide Elective Executive Office 2023

Current Statewide Elective Executive
97
(54D, 41R, 2NP)
31.3% of 310 seats

Total count for women statewide elective executive officeholders does not include: officials in appointive state cabinet-level positions; officials elected to executive posts by the legislature; officials elected as commissioners or board members from districts rather than statewide; members of the judicial branch; or elected members of university Boards of Trustees or Boards of Education.

NP = non-partisan

Statewide Elective Executives by Race and Ethnicity

*Women who self-identify as more than one race/ethnicity are included on CAWP pages for each group with which they identify. We strongly caution against adding totals from each racial/ethnic group should, as it will double count officeholders. 

Of the 97 current women statewide elective executives:

  • 4 identify as Asian American/Pacific Islander
  • 10 identify as Black
  • 8 identify as Latina
  • 1 identifies as Native American/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian 
  • 75 identify as white

Current Statewide Elective Executives by Position

Governor
12
(8D, 4R)

In addition, one woman serves as governor in the U.S. Territories: Lou Leon Guerrero in Guam.

More information on the history of women governors

Maura Healey, a Massachusetts Democrat, was elected to an open seat in 2022. She served as Attorney General from 2015 until she became governor.

Katie Hobbs, an Arizona Democrat, was elected to an open seat in 2022. She served as Secretary of state from 2019 until she became governor. She served in the Arizona Senate and House of Representatives.

Kathy Hochul, a New York Democrat, was lieutenant governor and became governor when the elected governor resigned. She served as U.S. Representative from 2011-2013 and was elected lieutenant governor in 2014.

Kay Ivey, an Alabama Republican, was lieutenant governor and became governor when the elected governor resigned. She was elected state treasurer in 2002 and re-elected in 2006; she won office as lieutenant governor in 2010 and was re-elected in 2014.

Laura Kelly, a Kansas Democrat, was elected to an open seat in 2018. She served as a Kansas State Senator from 2005 until she became governor. 

Tina Kotek, an Oregon Democrat, was elected to an open seat in 2022. She served in the Oregon House of Representatives, becoming the speaker of the house.

Michelle Lujan Grisham, a New Mexico Democrat, was elected to an open seat in 2018. She served as U.S. Representative from 2013 until she became governor. From 2004-2007 she was the New Mexico Secretary of Health. 

Janet Mills, Maine Democrat, was elected to an open seat to become the state’s first woman governor in 2018. She served as Attorney General of Maine from 2009 to 2011 and then 2013 until she became governor.

Kristi Noem, a South Dakota Republican, was elected to an open seat to become the state’s first woman governor in 2018. She served as U.S. Representative from 2011 until she became governor. From 2007-2011 she served in the South Dakota House of Representatives.

Kim Reynolds, an Iowa Republican, was appointed governor in 2017 when the incumbent left office to serve as U.S. Ambassador to China. In 2018, she became the first woman elected as governor in Iowa. She served as lieutenant governor from 2011 until becoming governor. Prior to her election as lieutenant governor, she served in the Iowa State Senate and as Clarke County treasurer.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, an Arkansas Republican, won an open seat in 2022. Previously, she served in the Trump administration.

Gretchen Whitmer, a Michigan Democrat, won an open seat in 2018. She served in the Michigan House of Representatives and Michigan State Senate, becoming senate minority leader.

Lieutenant Governor
22
(13D, 9R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Susan Bysiewicz D 2019-present Connecticut
Jacqueline Coleman D 2020-present Kentucky
Suzanne Crouch R 2017-present Indiana
Nancy Dahlstrom R 2023-present Alaska
Kim Driscoll D 2023-present Massachusetts
Pamela Evette R 2019-present South Carolina
Peggy Flanagan D/DFL 2019-present Minnesota
Bethany A. Hall-Long D 2017-present Delaware
Deidre M. Henderson R 2021-present Utah
Kristen Juras R 2021-present Montana
Eleni Kounalakis D 2019-present California
Sylvia J. Luke D 2023-present Hawaii
Sabina Matos D 2021-present Rhode Island
Aruna Miller D 2023-present Maryland
Tammy Miller R 2023-present North Dakota
Jeanette M. Nunez R 2019-present Florida
Dianne I. Primavera D 2019-present Colorado
Sara Rodriguez D 2023-present Wisconsin
Leslie Rutledge R 2023-present Arkansas
Winsome Earle Sears R 2022-present Virginia
Juliana Stratton D 2019-present Illinois
Tahesha Way D 2023-present New Jersey
Attorney General
11
(8D, 3R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Brenna Bird R 2023-present Iowa
Andrea Joy Campbell D 2023-present Massachusetts
Charity Clark D 2023-present Vermont
Lynn Fitch R 2020-present Mississippi
Michelle Henry D 2023-present Pennsylvania
Letitia A. James D 2019-present New York
Kathleen Jennings D 2019-present Delaware
Kristin Mayes D 2023-present Arizona
Ashley Moody R 2019-present Florida
Dana Nessel D 2019-present Michigan
Ellen F. Rosenblum D 2012-present Oregon
Secretary of State
11
(9D, 2R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Jocelyn Benson D 2019-present Michigan
Sarah L. Copeland-Hanzas D 2023-present Vermont
Sarah Godlewski D 2023-present Wisconsin
LaVonne Griffin-Valade D 2023-present Oregon
Jena Griswold D 2019-present Colorado
Christi Jacobsen R 2021-present Montana
Monae Johnson R 2022-present South Dakota
Elaine Folk Marshall D 1997-present North Carolina
Stephanie Thomas D 2023-present Connecticut
Maggie Toulouse Oliver D 2016-present New Mexico
Shirley N. Weber D 2021-present California
State Treasurer/Chief Financial Officer
8
(4D, 4R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Allison J. Ball R 2016-2023 Kentucky
Colleen C. Davis D 2019-present Delaware
Julie Ellsworth R 2019-present Idaho
Stacy L. Garrity R 2021-present Pennsylvania
Deborah B. Goldberg D 2015-present Massachusetts
Fiona Ma D 2019-present California
Laura Montoya D 2023-present New Mexico
Kimberly Yee R 2019-present Arizona
State Auditor
8
(5D, 3R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Julie Blaha D/DFL 2019-present Minnesota
Cindy Byrd R 2019-present Oklahoma
Diana DiZoglio D 2023-present Massachusetts
Jessica Holmes D 2023-present North Carolina
Patrice McCarthy D 2017-present Washington
Elise Nieshalla R 2023-present Indiana
Kristi Racines R 2019-present Wyoming
Lydia York D 2023-present Delaware
State Comptroller/Controller
3
(3D)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Malia Cohen D 2023-present California
Brooke E. Lierman D 2023-present Maryland
Susana A. Mendoza D 2017-present Illinois
Superintendent of Public Instruction
7
(1D, 5R, 1NP)

(Note: Title varies from state to state)

Name Party Year(s) Served State
Elsie M. Arntzen R 2017-present Montana
Kirsten Baesler NP 2013-present North Dakota
Debbie Critchfield R 2023-present Idaho
Megan Degenfelder R 2023-present Wyoming
Catherine Lauterbach Truitt R 2021-present North Carolina
Jill Underly D 2021-present Wisconsin
Ellen Weaver R 2023-present South Carolina
Commissioner of Labor
2
(1R, 1NP)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Leslie K. Osborn R 2019-present Oklahoma
Christina Stephenson NP 2023-present Oregon
Corporation Commissioner
3
(1D, 2R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Kim David R 2023-present Oklahoma
Lea Marquez Peterson R 2019-present Arizona
Anna M. Tovar D 2021-present Arizona
Public Service Commissioner
4
(4R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Twinkle A. Cavanaugh R 2011-present Alabama
Julie Fedorchak R 2013-present North Dakota
Sheri Haugen-Hoffart R 2022-present North Dakota
Tricia R. Pridemore R 2018-present Georgia
Public Utilities Commissioner
1
(1R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Kristie Fiegen R 2011-present South Dakota
Agriculture Commissioner
0
Insurance Commissioner
1
(1R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Vicki L. Schmidt R 2019-present Kansas
Railroad Commissioner
1
(1R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Christi L. Craddick R 2013-present Texas
Commissioner of Public Lands
3
(2D, 1R)
Name Party Year(s) Served State
Dawn Buckingham R 2023-present Texas
Hilary Franz D 2017-present Washington
Stephanie Garcia Richard D 2019-present New Mexico