Press Release

Briefing: What’s Ahead for Women on Election Day 2026 - Plus Final Nominee Data from CAWP

September 29, 2026
Daniel De Simone
760.703.0948

With one month left before Election Day 2026, the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) will host a virtual briefing on women in the midterms on October 6th at 1pm ET. This briefing featuring CAWP experts will cover topics including potential firsts, records, and milestones for women this year; nominee numbers; women and campaign finance; and more. 

Register to Attend

With most primary contests for 2026 complete (save for Louisiana’s Election Day jungle primary for U.S. House races), CAWP has compiled data on women nominees in the 2026 midterms. This year, record numbers of women are nominees for gubernatorial and state legislative offices. For deeper analysis about women as nominees and candidates for congressional seats in 2026, see Post-Primary Analysis: Women in 2026 Congressional Elections from CAWP Director of Research Kelly Dittmar.

Here is the latest data on women nominees in 2026. Numbers marked with an asterisk* indicate new records. Find all data on our Women Candidates in 2026 page.
 

U.S. Senate

  • 19 women are nominees for Senate. This is fewer than the record of 23, set in 2018, and the 21 who were nominees in 2024. Women are 26.8% of Senate nominees in 2026.
  • 10 Democratic women are nominees for Senate. This is fewer than the record of 15 nominees, first set in 2018 and again in 2024. Women are 28.6% of Democratic Senate nominees in 2026.
  • 9 Republican women are nominees for Senate. This matches the record of 9, set in 2020, and exceeds the 6 who were nominees in 2024. Women are 25% of Republican nominees in 2026.


U.S. House

  • 271 women are nominees for House. This is fewer than the record of 298, set in 2020, but more than the 259 who were nominees in 2024. Women are 31.8% of nominees for House.
  • 198 Democratic women are nominees for House. This is fewer than the record of 204, set in 2020, but more than the 191 who were nominees in 2024. Women are 45.5% of Democratic nominees for House.
  • 73 Republican women are nominees for House. This is fewer than the record of 94, set in 2020, but more than the 68 who were nominees in 2024. Women are 17.6% of Republican nominees for House.


Governor

  • 26* women are nominees for governor. [CAWP previously announced that a record of 27 women were nominees for governor. This number was revised downward when Candi English (R) was removed from the top-four nominees from Alaska’s non-partisan gubernatorial primary.] This is more than the previous record of 25, set in 2022 when there were a similar number of gubernatorial contests. Women are 35.1% of gubernatorial nominees.
  • 19* Democratic women are nominees for governor. This is more than the previous record of 16, set in 2022. Women are a majority of Democratic gubernatorial nominees, making up 52.8% of nominees.
  • 7 Republican women are nominees for governor. This is fewer than the record of 9, set in 2022. Women are 18.4% of Republican gubernatorial nominees.


Statewide [Including Governor]

  • 131 women are nominees for statewide executive offices, including governor. This is fewer than the record of 144, set in 2022.
  • 89 Democratic women are nominees for statewide executive offices. This is fewer than the record of 90, set in 2022.
  • 39 Republican women are nominees for statewide executive offices. This is fewer than the record of 52, set in 2022.


State Legislatures

  • 3,794* women are nominees for state legislatures. This is more than the record of 3,621, set in 2022, and the 3,511 who were nominees in 2024.
  • 2,571* Democratic women are nominees for state legislatures. This is more than the record of 2,402, set in 2018, and the 2,321 who were nominees in 2024.
  • 1,197 Republican women are nominees for state legislatures. This is fewer than the record of 1,291, set in 2022, but more than the 1,167 who were nominees in 2024.


These numbers can potentially change before Election Day. To find the most up-to-date numbers, as well as additional data and analysis, visit our Women Candidates in 2026 page.

Register to attend CAWP’s briefing on the general election here.