Wisconsin has the highest percentage of women on a supreme court in the country, followed by Washington and Illinois. South Carolina has the only Supreme Court with no women.
Below is a list of the gender breakdown of the highest courts in all 50 states.
By Peter Cameron and Hina Suzuki, THE BADGER PROJECT
With six of seven female justices, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has the highest proportion of women — 86 percent — of all the country’s top state courts, an analysis by The Badger Project has found.
Nationally, 136 of the approximate 330 sitting justices – about 41 percent – on the highest court in each state are women, according to The Badger Project review.
In 2020, the last time The Badger Project ran these numbers, 38 percent of all justices on the top state courts were female.
The other state supreme courts with the highest female-to-male ratio are in Washington and Illinois.
Seven of Washington’s nine high court judges, or about 78 percent, are women. Five of Illinois’ seven Supreme Court judges, or 71 percent, are female.
South Carolina’s five Supreme Court justices are men, making it the only all-male high state court in the U.S.
Close behind is the Mississippi Supreme Court, which has one female justice on its nine-judge panel. One of Louisiana’s seven justices, or approximately 14 percent, is a woman. Indiana, New Hampshire and North Dakota each have one female justice on their five-member courts for compositions that amount to 20 percent female.
Gender breakdown of justices on top state courts across the U.S.
| RANK | STATE | MEN | WOMEN | TOTAL JUSTICES | PERCENTAGE |
| 1 | Wisconsin | 1 | 6 | 7 | 85.7% |
| 2 | Washington | 2 | 7 | 9 | 77.8% |
| 3 | Illinois | 2 | 5 | 7 | 71.4% |
| 4 | New Mexico | 2 | 3 | 5 | 60.0% |
| 5 | Rhode Island | 2 | 3 | 5 | 60.0% |
| 6 | Tennessee | 2 | 3 | 5 | 60.0% |
| 7 | Utah | 2 | 3 | 5 | 60.0% |
| 8 | Wyoming | 2 | 3 | 5 | 60.0% |
| 9 | Arkansas | 3 | 4 | 7 | 57.1% |
| 10 | California | 3 | 4 | 7 | 57.1% |
| 11 | Maryland | 3 | 4 | 7 | 57.1% |
| 12 | Michigan | 3 | 4 | 7 | 57.1% |
| 13 | Minnesota | 3 | 4 | 7 | 57.1% |
| 14 | Nevada | 3 | 4 | 7 | 57.1% |
| 15 | New Jersey | 3 | 3 | 6 | 50.0% |
| 16 | Pennsylvania | 3 | 3 | 6 | 50.0% |
| 17 | New York* | 3 | 3 | 6 | 50.0% |
| 18 | Colorado | 4 | 3 | 7 | 42.9% |
| 19 | Kansas | 4 | 3 | 7 | 42.9% |
| 20 | Kentucky | 4 | 3 | 7 | 42.9% |
| 21 | Massachusetts | 4 | 3 | 7 | 42.9% |
| 22 | Missouri | 4 | 3 | 7 | 42.9% |
| 23 | Montana | 4 | 3 | 7 | 42.9% |
| 24 | Ohio | 4 | 3 | 7 | 42.9% |
| 25 | Oregon | 4 | 3 | 7 | 42.9% |
| 26 | Alaska | 3 | 2 | 5 | 40.0% |
| 27 | Delaware | 3 | 2 | 5 | 40.0% |
| 28 | Hawaii | 3 | 2 | 5 | 40.0% |
| 29 | Idaho | 3 | 2 | 5 | 40.0% |
| 30 | South Dakota | 3 | 2 | 5 | 40.0% |
| 31 | Vermont | 3 | 2 | 5 | 40.0% |
| 32 | West Virginia | 3 | 2 | 5 | 40.0% |
| 33 | Georgia | 6 | 3 | 9 | 33.3% |
| 34 | Oklahoma | 6 | 3 | 9 | 33.3% |
| 35 | Texas | 6 | 3 | 9 | 33.3% |
| 36 | Arizona | 5 | 2 | 7 | 28.6% |
| 37 | Connecticut | 5 | 2 | 7 | 28.6% |
| 38 | Florida | 5 | 2 | 7 | 28.6% |
| 39 | Iowa | 5 | 2 | 7 | 28.6% |
| 40 | Nebraska | 5 | 2 | 7 | 28.6% |
| 41 | North Carolina | 5 | 2 | 7 | 28.6% |
| 42 | Virginia | 5 | 2 | 7 | 28.6% |
| 43 | Alabama | 7 | 2 | 9 | 22.2% |
| 44 | Maine | 7 | 2 | 9 | 22.2% |
| 45 | Indiana | 4 | 1 | 5 | 20.0% |
| 46 | New Hampshire | 4 | 1 | 5 | 20.0% |
| 47 | North Dakota | 4 | 1 | 5 | 20.0% |
| 48 | Louisiana | 6 | 1 | 7 | 14.3% |
| 49 | Mississippi | 8 | 1 | 9 | 11.1% |
| 50 | South Carolina | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0.0% |
| TOTAL | 193 | 136 | 329 | 41.3% |
The Badger Project is a nonpartisan, citizen-supported journalism nonprofit in Wisconsin.
Categories: Politics
