Fair Representation Voting in State Elections

State Executives

Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, etc.

Women serve as governors in only six states (4 Republicans and 2 Democrats), making it one of the most underrepresented positions. Only 39 women have ever served as governor of a state, and 25 states have never had a woman governor. Seventy-five of the 312 elected statewide executive positions (24%) are currently filled by women.

Only two women of color have ever served as governor of a state, including Susana Martinez who is currently the governor of New Mexico. Only 2.2 percent of all elected statewide executive offices are filled by women of color.

Ranked choice voting would help to represent states more accurately and to dismantle the overwhelming incumbent advantage that puts women on an unequal playing field.

State Legislatures

Some states have incorporated multi-member districts into their state legislatures, and RepresentWomen believes every state should move in this direction. When districts are represented by more that one person, constituents are more likely to have representation for their divergent views, and elected officials are more likely to come from diverse backgrounds and have diverse views, better reflecting the American people. This is particularly true when ranked choice voting is combined with multi-winner districts.

Here is the ranking of all U.S. states based on women's representation in their state legislature:

infogram_0_state_leg_rankingsState Leg Rankingshttps://e.infogram.com/js/dist/embed.js?aT3text/javascript