Governors
To date, 44 women have served as governors in 30 states. In 2019, six Democratic and three Republican women are serving as governors. Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming, a Democrat, was the first female governor; she was elected in a special election in 1924 to succeed her deceased husband. Ella Grasso, a Connecticut Democrat, was the first female governor elected in her own right, in 1975.
percentage of state governors who are women  | 50  | 40  | 30  | 20  | 10  | 1975  | 1980  | 1985  | 1995  | 2000  | 2005  | 2010  | 2015  | 1990 