Men Sweep Congress Chairmanships as Republican Women Lose Ground

The leadership of House committees is shaping up to be an all-male club for the first time in almost a decade, as Republicans this week finalize their list of chairmen for the 119th Congress.

The GOP steering committee is still choosing leaders for panels that shape legislation on a gamut of issues. But after the sole woman running for a competitive gavel, Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Mo.), lost the Foreign Affairs chairmanship to Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.), there’s virtually no avenue for a Republican female committee leader selected by the steering committee to make it to the top of these panels.

“It’s unfortunate,” said Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.), an assistant whip and member of the Ways and Means Committee. “We’ve never been the party that was about checking boxes or identity politics, but the difference is we have women that are qualified to be chairs, and I don’t know why there wasn’t one who was able to become a chairperson of a committee.”

Republicans will lose two high-ranking women committee chairs with the retirement of Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and the term limit of Education and Workforce Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.). Foxx is a contender to lead the powerful House Rules Committee, which Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will appoint, but elected GOP committee leaders are all set to be men.

The lack of women atop major committees comes as women are set to lose congressional seats for the first time in 46 years, a dip driven by the fewer number of Republican women elected.

It follows an election in which President-elect Donald Trump embraced masculine culture, as epitomized by his courting of podcaster Joe Rogan, who has a fan base of younger men, and the appearance of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan at the Republican National Convention. Several of Trump’s cabinet picks have been dogged by accusations of sexual misconduct, including his choice for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, and former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), who withdrew from consideration for Attorney General.

Read More: Women in Congress Set to Decrease for First Time in 46 Years

The GOP has spent years criticizing diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI — an umbrella term that includes programs aimed at bolstering women in leadership positions.

“I don’t think people make decisions based upon a sexist outlook,” said Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wyo.), who earlier this year called Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris a “DEI hire.”

“I think that we all have talents and skills, and we’re put in positions based upon seniority and that sort of thing,” Hageman said.

Some Republicans said the all-male lineup is simply how the races shook out this year under what they argue is their meritocratic system.

“I want to give everyone a fair shot and due process,” said incoming GOP Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-Mich.).

Women are currently in charge of two steering-selected committees, compared to five women chairs in each the 117th and 116th Congress, when Democrats controlled the House. That breakdown excludes the Rules and Administration committees, which are appointed by the speaker, and select committees. The nominees elected by the Steering Committee will still need to be ratified by the full conference, which is usually uncontroversial.

Democrats are expected to have four to seven female ranking members, depending on how this month’s steering elections go.

“Part of the challenge for women on the Republican side is that there just are not, frankly, enough women in the institution itself,” said Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University. “They start further back when it comes to these leadership positions.”

Men Ascend

The top three House Republicans are expected to remain the same after the conference re-nominated its leadership, so the chamber will once again be led by three men.

Senate Republicans also chose an all-male roster of top three leaders in Sens. John Thune (S.D.), John Barrasso (Wyo.), and Tom Cotton (Ark.). And after four years of Harris serving as the first woman vice president, both the president and vice president will be men.

Senate committees will have more gender diversity, including with Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) in line to become the next chair of the powerful Appropriations Committee. But in the House, elected women committee leaders will likely be exclusively Democrats.

“Republicans have — they say every election cycle that they’re going to make a commitment to ensuring that they bring women into leadership roles and do a better job recruiting women,” said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), co-chair of the Democrats’ steering panel. “I’m a ‘show me’ person, not a ‘tell me’ person, and all you have to do is look at the results to show women that the Republicans just are not interested in putting women in positions of leadership.”

Malliotakis, who said the lack of women in committee chairmanships may encourage women to “kick down the door” in the future, noted that subcommittee leadership slots will give lawmakers another opportunity to shape policy. Speaker Johnson also said chairmanships and other positions are still being decided, adding that Republicans have an “embarrassment of riches” and “thoughtful elections.”

“The chairmen of committees are very important positions, but we really do engage all the membership,” Johnson told reporters Tuesday. “We have extraordinary women serving in Congress in the Republican conference. In fact, we’ve elected some really strong women in this upcoming freshman class. We value those voices, and everybody has an equal say at the table.”