2026 is shaping up as a 'Year of the Woman' for Democratic primaries

WASHINGTON — More than 30 years ago, history was made when five women won election to the Senate from states across the country in what was deemed the “Year of the Woman.” So far this election cycle, there are five credentialed women running for Senate in just two Democratic primaries in what looks like an unprecedented election year with multiple high-profile races featuring face-offs between female Democrats.

In Minnesota, Democratic-Farmer-Labor Rep. Angie Craig jumped into the open-seat race to succeed retiring Sen. Tina Smith, setting up a competitive primary against Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and former state Senate Minority Leader Melisa López Franzen.

In Michigan, Rep. Haley Stevens entered the Senate race last week, joining state Sen. Mallory McMorrow in the Democratic primary. (Democratic Sen. Gary Peters is not seeking reelection.)

While the race in Illinois to succeed longtime Sen. Richard J. Durbin is still taking shape, Democratic Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton is in and could be joined in the primary by Rep. Robin Kelly or Rep. Lauren Underwood, or both.

And if Sen. Jeff Merkley decides not to seek reelection, Oregon could feature a Democratic primary between women, considering there are five women in the state’s congressional delegation and multiple current and former statewide elected officials who would take a look.

“For a long time, women have been the core of the Democratic coalition and a minority in representation,” Democratic pollster Jill Normington said. “That is slowly changing where our elected officials look more and more like the people who vote for us. Maybe we shouldn’t be surprised that we have multiple women running for these seats.”

Normington is working with Stratton in Illinois.

“In 2018, it was a gendered response to Donald Trump’s election in 2016. It was about women getting off the sidelines and wanting to do more,” said Democratic consultant Martha McKenna, who is working with Stevens in Michigan. “This feels different. Now they have experience. They’ve built their political muscles, and running for the Senate is an obvious next step.”

Building the bench

In the first “Year of the Woman” in 1992, four Democratic women were elected to the Senate for the first time: Patty Murray of Washington, Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois and Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer of California. Maryland Democrat Barbara Mikulski won reelection.

The 2018 cycle has been referred to as the “Year of the Woman” on the House side after a record 103 women were elected, including 90 Democrats. It also helped that many of them overperformed and survived the 2022 midterm elections.

That filled Democratic benches around the country with women who are now in a better position to run statewide, including Craig, Stevens and Underwood. Beyond the current slate of Senate candidates, Rep. Elissa Slotkin was elected to the Senate from Michigan last year and former Rep. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia and Rep. Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey are top contenders to be elected governor this year.

“It’s a reflection of the infusion of women as candidates and activists within the party,” said Democratic pollster Anna Greenberg, who is working with Flanagan in Minnesota. “In the past, it was harder to raise money or run as a woman. But I don’t even pitch candidates about what it’s like to run as a woman anymore. It seems so out of date.”

Credentialed women competing against each other in a primary for a Senate seat is not unprecedented. With a long and deep bench and significant Democratic lean, California voters have seen it a couple of times. State Attorney General Kamala Harris and Rep. Loretta Sanchez faced off in 2016, and Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee ran against each other in 2024, in a race eventually won by Democrat Adam B. Schiff. In 2000, Maria Cantwell had to get past state Insurance Commissioner and fellow Democrat Deborah Senn in the all-party primary in Washington.

But this cycle’s simultaneous slate of intraparty contests between women across multiple states is new. It’s a consequence of electoral success down the ballot and a filling and maturation of the political bench. For example, as recently as 2010, Oregon’s House delegation was all-male. Now it’s five Democratic women and one Republican man.

Primary colors

Republicans often revel in the emergence of contested Democratic primaries. But the GOP is unlikely to compete in the general election in Illinois; the party will need a strong candidate in Minnesota; and neither Stevens nor McMorrow look like general election liabilities in Michigan.

Nominating a problematic candidate is more consequential than the primary itself. Republicans should remember this from Nevada in 2010, when former state Assemblywoman Sharron Angle defeated former state Sen. Sue Lowden in the primary and then went on to lose a winnable race against Democratic leader Harry Reid.

There haven’t been many other Senate primaries featuring multiple women on the Republican side. There’s the 2018 Arizona primary between Rep. Martha McSally and former state Sen. Kelli Ward and the 2022 all-party race in Alaska between Sen. Lisa Murkowski and former state administration commissioner Kelly Tshibaka.

Primaries still make parties uncomfortable, but they don’t have to hurt a party’s ability to win a general election.

“A lot of people are talking about how Democrats have serious problems. But the fact that a lot of people want to run is a sign of health of the party,” Normington said.

And high-profile presidential losses aren’t discouraging women from seeking higher office.

“There’s one more glass ceiling we really want to break, but progress is progress,” said a fourth Democratic strategist who requested anonymity to speak candidly. “Having so many successful credible Democratic women putting together credible Senate runs, that’s nothing but good news.”

It’s something people should start getting used to in Democratic primaries, McKenna said.

“We’re going to see this as the future. When there are opportunities, it is the rule, not the exception that there will be one or more women qualified, viable and ready to run,” she said. “This is a permanent change.”