This story was originally reported by Grace Panetta on the 19th. Meet Grace and read more of her reports on gender, politics and policy.
The state legislature creates most of the laws passed in the United States and serves as a major pipeline for higher offices. However, sexual harassment in state politics remains “a systemic and continuing issue affecting both parties,” according to a new report from the Nonpartisan National Women’s Defense League (NWDL) that was first shared with the 19th.
“Our latest research reinforces what we already knew. The issue of sexual harassment in statehouses is prevalent, damaging and concealed,” says Emma Davidson Tribbs, co-founder and director of NWDL. “Abuse of these powers that not only traumatize, they also hinder policy decisions, discard taxpayer resources, and disproportionately affect the leadership of women and minority governments.”
NWDL published its first report, “Abuse of Power: Discovery of 10 Years of Sexual Harassment in the State Government,” released in November 2013, tracking allegations over a decade. Four allegations that were incorrectly omitted from the 2023 report. The report says the number of actual cases is likely three times higher.
Public allegations of sexual misconduct against state lawmakers peaked at the height of the #MeToo movement in 2017 and 2018, leading to new protections and policy changes in some states. NWDL was founded in 2022 to track, research and develop solutions to the broader issues of sexual misconduct in the halls of power.
There are more than 7,300 state legislators serving 99 state legislators across the United States. The state legislature is primarily an autonomous organization, and even after postmetou reforms, many lawmakers said there was a lack of mechanisms to report state misconduct.
The NWDL report did not track allegations against staff, but sexual misconduct allegations against high-ranking staff in the Pennsylvania Governor’s office, the Mayor of Los Angeles and the Mayor of Indianapolis also shed light on the issue in 2024.
As part of the updated 2024 report, NWDL commissioned an investigation into state legislators. The state legislator’s survey was designed with perspectives and opinions from other advocacy groups and was conducted by research and policy consulting firm Soondery. Of the 207 lawmakers who responded, 57% were female, 40.6% were male, and 2.4% were identified in a different way. Approximately one-third of state lawmakers are women.
One in three state legislators surveyed said they experienced or witnessed sexual harassment at the Capitol, with 62% saying they personally experienced harassment.
The most common types of harassment they reported were verbal (88%), physical (42%), and unnecessary sexual advances (40%). A little over 35% said they did not report any harassment. Of those who reported, 53% of the cases were surveyed, with a quarter saying they were not, and 22% saying they didn’t know the outcome.
Of the cases investigated, 42% said they had a consequence for the accused, 36% said they had no effect on the accused, and 21% said they were unaware of the consequences.
Approximately two-thirds, or 64% of respondents, said the state had an official process of reporting sexual misconduct, with 40% saying they had no sexual harassment training and were not sure if the state needed it.
“I have experienced almost all sorts of forms of harassment since my first day,” Nebraska Sen. Machaela Kavanaugh said in a statement.
“One of the particularly prominent incidents happened during a live stream of floor discussions when a colleague said my name while reading a scene describing rape and demanding sex,” Democrats said. “The response from leadership in Congress underscored how inadequately we addressed the issue of harassment that did not protect staff, lobbyists, citizens and elected officials within the government.”
Pennsylvania Major Abbey said, “We experienced harassment in the very hall where our laws are being made.”
“In Harrisburg, that’s all too common. The governor’s top advisor, the sitting lawmaker, the lobbyist — and it’s all unacceptable,” the Republican said. “That’s why we continued to sponsor laws that prevent harassment, support survivors and ensure that everyone on the federal state capitol is held accountable.”
Across 88 bills related to sexual harassment passed in 24 states in 2024, the NWDL has identified six bills in five states that focus on tackling sexual misconduct, including state legislatures and other “political workspaces.” “This progress, while important, has been barely depressed by the work required to address the issue of sexual harassment in Congress,” the report said.
“Most Congresses have failed to enact laws, policies and surveillance mechanisms that establish safe workplace standards, employee protection, and safeguards to prevent political and partisan self-interest from undermining the process,” the report released.
In some cases, political organizations such as the Nebraska Senate Republican, the Kentucky House Democrats, and the Indiana Senate Democrats took action to address reporting of rank sexual misconduct and implemented internal rules and procedures to address sexual misconduct.
In Indiana, several Democratic officials faced public sexual misconduct allegations in 2024, urging 40 women in Indiana politics to send letters to state Democrats demanding accountability. The accusations and surrounding protests have announced that they will not seek another term for the expulsion of Senate minority leader Greg Taylor and chairman of state Democrat Mike Schmoor, who is enacting new ethical reforms.
In a statement, Indiana political strategist Elise Schlock said he was “admitted by the ongoing pattern of sexual harassment and the lack of appetite that would bring about the substantial, commonsense change needed to correct it.”
“The lack of basic professionalism and respect will continue to drain our political bench,” she added. “I need to fix this now.”
Sexual harassment at the Capitol has further marginalized influences from women, especially women of color, especially from the political space, affecting who is heard and what policies are passed, NWDL said. The state legislature also cultivates talent benches for its high office.
The release of the report comes amidst a cultural and political backlash against the #MeToo movement with some men accused of sexual misconduct that have returned to political power.
President Donald Trump was elected for a second term in November after the ju judges held responsibility for E. Jean Carroll, a columnist for the def court from sexual abuse and honorary amefight. He later appointed several people accused of sexual misconduct in his cabinet, including former Congressman Matt Gaetz, who began his career in the Florida State Legislature. Gaetz retracted his appointment prior to the release of the House Ethics Committee’s report, before he found substantial evidence of having sex with a minor and paying women sexually. Gaetz never got criminally charged and denied all claims.
Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat who resigned as New York governor in 2021, was found to be attempting a political comeback in a campaign for the mayor of New York after it was discovered he had sexually harassed 11 women during his time in office.
Cuomo, a former Democratic power player, resigned as New York governor in 2021 after compiling a 165-page report outlining evidence of sexually harassing 11 women during his tenure in a five-month investigation commissioned by the New York Attorney General’s Office. Another investigation from the Department of Justice found that Cuomo harassed 13 women who worked in the state for eight years. Cuomo denied the sexual harassment allegations, but he publicly apologized for the familiar contact and out-of-color jokes that made the woman uncomfortable.
“Dealing with sexual harassment in state governments can prevent consecutive sexual harassments, and research shows that being mostly repetitive offenders causes more harm from their high-influence status,” the report states. “In short, action at the legislative level in the state is an opportunity to wipe out higher levels of government.”
