New Record for Women Gubernatorial Candidates; New Mexico Poised to Elect Nation's First Native American Woman Governor

A new record has been set for women candidates for governor, according to the latest data from the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP), a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University. In election 2026, 72 (43D, 29R) women have filed to run for governor around the country, outpacing the 69 women who filed in 2022. The number of gubernatorial offices up for election varies from cycle to cycle, but the number of contests was the same in 2022 as 2026. The number of Democratic women running for governor also hit a new record; 43 Democratic women are running for governor in 2026, beating the previous record of 41 set in 2018. With filing deadlines still to come in seven states, the overall number of women candidates and the number of Democratic women candidates could still increase; the number of Republican women filed for gubernatorial races (29) is eight short of the record (37, set in 2022), so Republican women could potentially surpass their record as well.

In addition, primary elections were held on Tuesday in California, Iowa, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Dakota. Full results for women candidates in federal and statewide executive races are available on this post on our Election Analysis page; there are a number of undecided races featuring women candidates from yesterday's primaries, so this post will be updated as those contests are decided.

Among the most notable results for women:
 

California

• Many contests remain too close to call in California, which utilizes a top-two, non-partisan primary system. For the most up-to-date results, continue to check our primary results post.
• At present, it appears that no woman candidate will advance to the general election for governor in California. No woman has ever served as governor in California.
• While many contests remain too close to call, there are already notable results in California’s U.S. House contests.
  • Two (2D) of California’s incumbent women representatives did not run for re-election to the U.S. House in 2026: Julia Brownley (D-CA26) and Nancy Pelosi (D-CA11). Women have advanced to the general election contests in both districts: Connie Chan (D), a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, came in second in California’s 11th Congressional District primary, and state Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D) finished first in California’s 26th Congressional District primary. Both contests strongly favor Democrats; however, in California's top-two, non-partisan primary system, it is possible for both general-election candidates to come from the same party. This is the case in CA-11, where Chan will face a fellow Democrat in the general election; in CA-26, Irwin will face a Republican opponent.
  • Hilda Solis (D), current Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors chair and former U.S. representative and secretary of labor, advanced to the general election in California’s 38th congressional district. This open-seat U.S. House contest, in which she will face a Republican, is currently rated as “Solid Democrat” by Cook Political Report. Solis previously served in the U.S. House from 2001 to 2009. 
  • California state Senator Aisha Wahab (D) advanced in first place to the general election in California’s 14th Congressional District. This open-seat U.S. House contest, in which she will face a Republican, is currently rated as “Solid Democrat” by Cook Political Report. If successful in November, Wahab will be the first Middle Eastern/North African woman to serve in Congress from California.

Iowa

• Current U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson (R) won the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in Iowa to replace retiring incumbent U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R). The open-seat contest is currently rated as “Lean Republican.” 
• Women are 4 of 8 (50%) major-party nominees for U.S. House in Iowa, including 3 of 4 (75%) Democrats and 1 of 4 (25%) Republicans. U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson (R) ran successfully for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate instead of running for re-election to the U.S. House.
• Of the 4 (3D, 1R) women U.S. House nominees in Iowa, 3 (2D, 1R) will compete in general election contests currently rated as toss-ups by Cook Political Report. This includes incumbent U.S. Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R) and former Iowa state Representative Christina Bohannan (D), who will compete in an all-woman rematch in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District; in 2024, Miller-Meeks defeated Bohannan by less than 1,000 votes. Learn more about all-woman congressional and gubernatorial contests here. Iowa state Senator Sarah Trone Garriott (D) will challenge incumbent U.S. Representative Zach Nunn (R) in another toss-up contest in Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District.
• Two (2R) women are nominees for statewide elective executive office in Iowa. Incumbent Attorney General Brenna Bird (R) is running for re-election and current Lieutenant Governor Chris Cournoyer (R) won the Republican nomination for state auditor. Incumbent Governor Kim Reynolds (R) did not run for re-election in 2026 and will retire at the end of this term. 

Montana

• Alani Bankhead won the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Montana. The open-seat contest is currently rated as “Solid Republican” by Cook Political Report. If successful, Bankhead would be Montana’s first woman in the U.S. Senate and first Latina elected statewide.
• Women are 0 of 4 (0%) major-party nominees for U.S. House in Montana. No woman has served in Congress from Montana since 1943, when Jeannette Rankin (R) – the first woman to serve in Congress – completed her second term. Rankin’s first term in the U.S. House was from 1917 to 1919.
   

New Jersey

• No women filed as candidates for the U.S. Senate in New Jersey in 2026. No woman has ever served in the U.S. Senate from New Jersey. 
• Women are 6 of 22 (27.3%) major-party nominees for U.S. House in New Jersey, including 5 of 12 (41.7%) Democrats and 1 of 10 (10%) Republicans. U.S. Representative Bonnie Watson Coleman (D) did not run for re-election.
• Of the 6 (5D, 1R) women U.S. House nominees in New Jersey, all 3 (3D) incumbent women are favored to win election, and just 1 (1D) woman challenger – Rebecca Bennett (D) – is in a contest not currently favoring the incumbent. Bennett will challenge incumbent U.S. Representative Tom Kean (R) in New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District; the contest is currently rated as a toss up by Cook Political Report. 
• Two (2R) women remain the only candidates in a U.S. House contest that is too close to call for the Republican nomination in New Jersey’s 9th Congressional District. The winner will face incumbent U.S. Representative Nellie Pou (D) in an all-woman general election contest that is currently rated as “Likely Democrat” by Cook Political Report.

New Mexico

• Deb Haaland, former secretary of the interior and U.S. representative, won the Democratic nomination for governor in New Mexico. The contest is currently rated as “Likely Democrat” by Cook Political Report. If successful in November, Haaland would be the first Native American woman governor in the United States. 
• Deb Haaland (D) will be joined by current Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver (D), who won the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor, on the 8th all-woman gubernatorial ticket in U.S. history. In New Mexico, nominees for governor and lieutenant governor run separately in the primary election but run as a single ticket in the general election. If successful, Haaland and Toulouse Oliver will be the second all-woman gubernatorial ticket to win a general election; Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey (D) and Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll (D) were the first women elected on a joint ticket. New Mexico would also become the 4th state to have women serving concurrently as governor and lieutenant governor. 
• Women are 5 of 14 (35.7%) major-party nominees for statewide elective executive office in New Mexico, including 4 of 7 (57.1%) Democrats and 1 of 7 (14.3%) Republicans. A new woman is all but assured to win in the all-woman contest for secretary of state between Ramona Goolsby (R) and Amanda López Askin (D).
• Women are 3 of 6 (50%) major-party nominees for U.S. House in New Mexico, including 2 of 3 (66.7%) Democrats and 1 of 3 (33.3%) Republicans. Both incumbent women (2D) representatives are favored to win re-election in November. 
• In New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District, incumbent U.S. Representative Melanie Stansbury (D) will be challenged by Ndidiamaka Okpareke (R) in an all-woman contest currently rated as “Solid Democrat” by Cook Political Report.
• No women filed as candidates for the U.S. Senate in New Mexico in 2026. No woman has ever served in the U.S. Senate from New Mexico. 

South Dakota

• No women filed as candidates for U.S. Senate in South Dakota in 2026. No woman has served in the U.S. Senate from South Dakota since 1948. 
• Nikki Gronli (D) won the Democratic nomination for South Dakota’s at-large seat in the U.S. House. The open-seat contest is currently rated as “Solid Republican” by Cook Political Report. No woman has served in Congress from South Dakota since 2019.
• No women filed as candidates for governor in South Dakota in 2026. Nominees for all other statewide elective executive offices will be selected at party conventions.

For more information, see the full analysis of how women fared in yesterday's contests on our Election Analysis page. Complete context about women in the 2026 elections can be found on CAWP's Election Watch.