Assemblyman Leland Yee: Women in State Legislatures

The women who met for tea on the fateful day which led to the first conference on women's rights, held at Seneca Falls, New York - and the countless millions of others who, for the past 155 years, planned, organized, lectured, wrote, marched, organized petition campaigns, lobbied, canvassed voters, staged parades, ran for office, argued court cases and broke new ground in every field imaginable - irrevocably changed the world of today's woman.

Today's woman is the living legacy of equal rights achieved non-violently and against all odds by those who were powerless. There is, however, much left to be done.

This year, we pay homage to the early efforts of pioneers in women's rights by celebrating the 155th anniversary of the Seneca Falls Convention. Each March, during "Women's History Month," we acknowledge the accomplishments and contributions of those who helped improve the status of women in our society.

Unfortunately, many of us remember when women were thought of only as mothers, sisters and wives - and it was not all that long ago. Over the last 30-plus years, however, during the rise of a monumental women's movement, women finally began to gain well-deserved recognition for their many contributions to society.

Today, women are the doctors who save our lives and the educators who teach our children. They are attorneys, pilots, engineers and soldiers. They are the police officers who enforce the laws and they are the legislators who make them.

Today, 73 women serve in the U.S. Congress. A record 14 women, including former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, serve in the U.S. Senate. In the House of Representatives, there are currently 59 women, which is also an all-time high. The number of women in statewide elective executive posts is 79, including a record six state governors.

Twenty three women have served as governors of states. Additionally, a woman is the current governor of Puerto Rico. Arizona is the first state to have a woman succeed another woman as governor. Of the 23 women governors, 16 were first elected in their own right, three replaced their husbands and four became governor by constitutional succession, one of whom subsequently won a full term.

In ever-increasing numbers, women are also joining state legislatures. Following the 2002 general elections, the states with the highest proportion of women legislators were as follows: Washington, 36.7 percent; Colorado, 34 percent; Maryland, 33.0 percent; Oregon, 31.1 percent; Vermont, 31.1 percent; California, 30 percent; New Mexico, 29.5 percent; Connecticut, 29.4 percent; Delaware, 29 percent; Nevada, 28.6 percent.

These gains are truly remarkable in light of the fact that in 1969 women held only 301 seats nationwide, which was a mere four percent of the country's total seats. Today, out of 7,382 state legislative seats in America, 1,645, or 22.3 percent, are held by women.

Since 1971, the number of women serving in state legislatures has increased more than four-fold. Women also hold several top legislative leadership positions. Today, the minority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives is Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat from San Francisco. She is the first woman ever to lead a congressional political party!

At the state level, two women serve as presidents of state senates and five women serve as speakers of state houses. In the California Legislature, there are 27 women in the Assembly (22 Democrats and five Republicans) and 11 women (all Democrats) in the Senate. Women also chair 13 of the 30 Assembly standing committees, as well as a number of select and sub-committees. In the Senate, women chair nine committees.

However, despite the striking gains women have made in Congress and state legislatures throughout the last 30 years - not to mention the record number of women governors and additional women members of the California Legislature - the representation of women in Congress increased by only one after the 2002 elections and the total number of women elected officials has actually seen a small decrease.

In statewide elected executive positions there has been a decrease from 89 to 79 and for the first time in more than 25 years, California has no woman serving in a statewide elective office. It is important that we do not let this small decrease keep us from continuing to see women serve as policymakers throughout the nation, as we show our daughters they can grow up to be whatever they choose to be.

Assemblyman Leland Yee represents California's 12th Assembly District.