Where are the Women in DC Politics?

Written by: Keith Ivey on Mar 12, 2010 11:42 AM EST

For DC for Democracy, I've been compiling a list of candidates for this year's elections in DC. So far I've found 28 candidates for the 10 partisan offices on the ballot this year — mayor, council chairman, 2 at-large council members, 4 ward-level council members (1, 3, 5, and 6), delegate to the House of Representatives, and shadow representative. Of those 28, only 3 are women: Mary Cheh, the incumbent Ward 3 council member; Eleanor Holmes Norton, the incumbent delegate to the House; and Faith, the octogenarian eccentric with a trumpet who runs for mayor every 4 years. Why are only 11 percent of the people running for office in the District women?

To see whether things have been different in the past, I looked at the historical composition of the DC council. It has 13 members, and right now only 3 are women. In the past, it has been that low twice before: in 1993–94 (but then, unlike now, the mayor was a woman) and in 1975–76 when the council was first established. On the other hand, there have been 3 periods when 7 members, a majority of the council, were women: 1979–80, 1985–86, and 1997–98.

After the previous 2 low points, the council gained 2 women in each of the next 2 elections, reaching a high point 4 years later. Unfortunately, the way this election year is shaping up, is does not look like history will repeat itself.

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Location: Washington, DC 20008