Election 2014: How Female Candidates Fared in the Midterms
Female candidates made gains, and a few firsts.
-- With the results of all midterm elections now settled, the total numbers for female congressional participation are in as well: a record number of 104 women will serve in the 114th congress.
While the number of female senators will remain stagnant at 20, the number of women serving in the house is at a record number of 84.
Before the midterm elections, there were a record-breaking number of 99 women serving in the 113th Congress, twenty senators and 79 members of the House of Representatives. The special election of Alma Adams in North Carolina, effective immediately, means that the number of total women serving in the outgoing Congress has already reached 100, a milestone in itself.
Martha McSally's official victory over Ron Barber in Arizona brings the total number of female congresswoman to 104.The number of women senators is slated to remain at 20, after Louisiana Senator-elect Bill Cassidy defeated incumbent Mary Landrieu in a runoff earlier this month.
In keeping with a nationwide trend, the Republican senatorial candidates fared much better than their Democratic counterparts. Landrieu advanced to a runoff, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Only one of the 11 Democratic candidates -- New Hampshire's Jeanne Shaheen -- managed to eke out a victory. By contrast, three of the five Republican female candidates were victorious. Two of those candidates, Iowa's Joni Ernst and West Virginia's Shelley Moore Capito, will make history as the first female senators their states have ever sent to Washington.
Election 2014 Firsts: Meet the History-Makers of the Midterms
Like the Senate, there were some notable historical milestones in the House: Mia Love of Utah will become the first African-American female Republican member of Congress. At age 30, Elise Stefanik, a Republican from New York's 21st district, became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress.
Female gubernatorial candidates saw a similar scenario: the total number of female governors will remain static, and Republican candidates fared better than Democratic ones. Before the midterms, there were five female governors. Although nine female candidates ran, only five were victorious: three Republican candidates and two Democrats. In what is a tiny bit of good news for Democrats, however, there will now be two female governors from their party (Gina Raimondo of Rhode Island and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire). Before the midterms, Hassan had been the only one. Raimondo has also made history by becoming the first female governor of Rhode Island.