Press Release

New Record for Women State Legislative Nominees And Results from the Delaware Primaries

September 16, 2026
Daniel De Simone
760.703.0948

There is a new record for women nominated in elections for state legislative races around the country, according to the latest data from the Center for American Women and Politics, a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University. In 2026, 3,794 (2,571D, 1,197R, 22NP, 4Ind) women are nominees in state legislative races, beating the record of 3,621, set in 2022.

Additionally, Democratic women have also set a new record for state legislative nominees; the 2,571 Democratic women nominated in 2026 bests the previous record of 2,402, set in 2018. Meanwhile, Republicans have fallen short of their record levels, set in 2022, when 1,291 GOP women won nominations; 1,197 Republican women are state legislative nominees in 2026.

These numbers may change slightly before Election Day as candidates are added or removed from the ballot for various reasons. For the latest data, visit the state legislature section of CAWP's 2026 Election Watch page.

Also, primary elections were held yesterday in Delaware. Full results for women candidates in federal and statewide executive races are available on this post on our Election Analysis page; there are no undecided races featuring women candidates, so this post contains final results for women in 2026 Delaware primaries. Women in 2026 Delaware state legislative contests are included in the numbers above.


Delaware

  • One (1D) woman filed as a candidate in the U.S. Senate Democratic primary but was unsuccessful.
  • Incumbent U.S. Representative Sarah McBride (D) was unopposed in her bid for the Democratic nomination for Delaware’s at-large U.S. House seat. She will seek re-election in a general election contest currently rated as “Solid Democrat” by Cook Political Report. McBride is the only major-party woman candidate for U.S. House in Delaware in 2026. 
  • Women are 3 of 5 (60%) major-party nominees for statewide elective executive office in Delaware, including 2 of 3 (66.7%) Democrats and 1 of 2 (50%) Republicans, including an all woman contest between incumbent Lydia York (D) and April Callaway (R) for auditor.


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.