Our Campaign

we recruit progressive women to run

Our Mission

Close the Gap California is a statewide campaign to close the gender gap in the California Legislature by 2028.

How We Achieve Gender Parity

Since our launch in 2013, Close the Gap has been changing the face of the California Legislature one cycle at a time. Founder Mary Hughes and CTG’s founding mothers set us on the #PathToParity with their strategic vision. Today, 20 Close the Gap women are serving in Sacramento, and 14 of them are women of color. 

We recruit accomplished, progressive women in targeted districts and prepare them to launch competitive campaigns. The women we recruit are positioned to lead on issues of equity in California, and to set the national gold standard for progressive policy and governance.

Less than a decade ago, only 26 of 120 California legislators were female. Following California’s first Motherlode* election cycle in 2022, 50 women serve today – a new all-time high of 42%.

Close the Gap’s proven strategy targets winnable legislative districts years in advance: we build and vet a list of diverse, progressive women with the skills and credibility to run strong. We then offer each prospective candidate encouragement, coaching and connections via a comprehensive, one-on-one exploration process. Our goal is to provide her the tools to make a fully informed, confident determination as to whether running for state office is right for her, and ensure she’s prepared to run competitively if she decides to launch a campaign.

Target

Open & Winnable Districts one cycle ahead

Recruit

Progressive Women

Explore

Winning Campaign Strategies

Partner

with Organizations & Leaders who share our values


Achieve

Gender parity in CA State Legislature by 2028

Close the Gap California is a registered 527 organization. We are not a political action committee and do not endorse, or fund candidates: We Recruit.

What We Stand For

We work only with women committed to these core progressive priorities:

Reproductive freedom

Public education funding

Combating poverty

We proudly uplift the good work of our Democratic women legislators, 20 of whom went through CTG’s exploration process.

Join Us!

Our campaign is driven by a small staff as well as passionate, committed volunteers. Between now and 2028, 50+ seats will open, providing ample opportunity to bring our State Legislature to gender parity. We need help to recruit the future women legislators who will do it! We count on a team of volunteers to identify, ask, guide, and encourage potential candidates. Interested in becoming a recruiting volunteer?