On Election Day, women won.
New Hampshire made history in the 2026 General Election by electing its first women-majority Executive Council, including two women of color, and a record number of women to the New Hampshire House of Representatives, at 40%.
The Statehouse
The huge gain in women’s representation in the House was due to robust numbers of Democratic women.
There will be a record 142 Democratic women in the Legislature (133 State Representatives and nine Senators), surpassing the previous high of 116 Democratic women in 2018. Meanwhile, New Hampshire elected only 25 Republican women to the House, the fewest in more than five decades and only two Republican women to the Senate-the lowest in twenty years.
The Executive Council
Voters elected four women, including two women of color, to the five-member Executive Council.
This dramatic increase in women’s representation on the Council matters because this body, which shares executive authority with the Governor, approves state contracts and nominations for judges and commissioners. In the past five years, the Executive Council had repeatedly rejected or watered down women’s health contracts:
In 2025, the three men on the Executive Council rejected a federally funded contract to study women’s health, outvoting the council’s two women who supported it. Only after significant public outcry and advocacy, did the EC reverse course and approve the contract.
Since 2021, the Executive Council has rejected five state contracts for reproductive health care providers totaling $1.3 million. Those rejected contracts specifically covered Title X services including reproductive health care, birth control, and STI and cancer screenings — they did not include any funding for abortion.
Changing the Political Landscape to Achieve Parity
When women serve in office, regardless of party, they are more likely to support policies that benefit women and girls and are more likely to reach across the aisle to reach consensus.
Here in New Hampshire, we’re known for political firsts like our first-in-the-nation all-woman Congressional delegation, but we have a long way to go to achieve political parity for women.
When women run for office, they are just as likely to win as men. The problem is that women are significantly less likely to run in the first place, feel less qualified than men despite having similar education and experience, and are less likely to be encouraged to run. The Women’s Foundation is committed to breaking down those barriers by giving Granite State women the tools, confidence, and community they need to seek office.
Ultimately, New Hampshire will need more women, regardless of party, to run for office to reach parity in the State House.
Read and download the full Gender Matters report to dive into the details of this historic election.
