Women Still Hold Fewer Than a Third of All Municipal Offices

The Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP), a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University, is pleased to announce the release of CAWP’s 2024 data on women in municipal offices across the United States. This dataset offers insights into women's representation in local elected roles, including mayoral positions, city councils, and equivalent offices. Women hold just 32.3% of municipal offices, while men accounted for 67.1%, closely mirroring figures from 2023.

CAWP’s findings from the 2024 data on municipalities include:

• Top States: Colorado, Nevada, and Oregon topped the list with the highest percentages of women in municipal office, with 46.1%, 44.3%, and 43.2%, respectively. 
• Bottom States: States that have the lowest levels of women's representation in municipal office – indicating areas where efforts to increase gender parity in local governance are particularly needed – include Nebraska (19.2%), Mississippi (19.7%), North Dakota (20.0%), South Dakota (23.0%), Alabama (23.1%). 
• States that climbed the rankings significantly since 2023 include: 
  • Indiana (29.1%) (+7 spots)
  • Tennessee (29.2%) (+6 spots)
  • Georgia (31.8%) (+5 spots)
• States that fell in rankings since 2023 include:
  • Alaska (37.3%) (-10 spots)
  • Montana (32.7%) and Delaware (28.4%) (-9 spots)
  • Rhode Island (31.2%) (-7 spots)
• A comparative analysis with state legislative representation reveals variations in gender parity between municipal and state-level offices across different states. Some states, such as Nevada and Colorado, demonstrate relatively high levels of women's representation in both municipal and state legislatures, while others, like Alabama and Mississippi, lag in both arenas.
• Women’s share of seats in mayoral and municipal council offices equaled 32.0% in 2023.

“The 2024 data on women in municipal offices shows little progress has been made in the last year,” said Debbie Walsh, Director of CAWP. “Continued monitoring and advocacy is crucial to address the disparities. This is especially important on the municipal level, which is often the closest level of government to citizens, directly impacting their daily lives. Women, who are on the frontlines in their communities, should have an equal voice on local policies around education, public health, transportation, and development.”

This data includes information about mayoral offices and members of the municipal legislative branch of incorporated cities and towns with populations over 10,000, per the U.S. Census. The number of cities and towns included in the data varies widely between states. Hawaii, for example, has just one incorporated municipality with a population over 10,000; California, meanwhile, has nearly 400.  

CAWP’s 2024 Women in Municipal Office fact page includes an interactive map showing women’s share of municipal offices in all 50 states, as well as a table that exhibits percentages, state rankings, and statistical shifts from 2023 for women’s representation in municipal offices. A second table compares women’s representation in municipal office to their representation in state legislatures. For more information, please visit cawp.rutgers.edu/facts.