ABSTRACT
Using state legislatures, this chapter aims to investigate a variety of trends associated with the election of African American women, when compared to their male counterparts. The data, derived from the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, track the number of African Americans elected to the state legislature from 1995to 2011. In 2013, out of 7,776 female state legislators serving nationwide, 364 are women of color; of these, 239 are African American women. Women of color only comprise 4.9 percent of all state legislators. African American women are central to African American political representation. Namely, African American women have achieved elective offices more than African American men since 1990. The research documents the concerns expressed in an earlier essay by Wendy Smooth, whereby she examines the dearth of research conducted on African American women in politics despite the various gains made by this group over time.
