--- description: Women make up only 20 percent of the current U.S. Congress title: Study: Another 100 Years Before Congress is Half Women image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt268b7a8cc806d89f/69869803adae44704d543bca/women-congress-elizabeth-warren.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Congress](/tag/congress/) ## Congress Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # It'll Be Over 100 Years Before Congress is Half Women, Study Finds by [Joan E. Greve](/author/joan-greve/) ## Joan E. Greve Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 17, 2014 9:59 PM CUT  Senator Elizabeth Warren speaks at the Democratic State Convention in Worcester, Mass. on June 13. Senator Elizabeth Warren speaks at the Democratic State Convention in Worcester, Mass. on June 13.Boston Globe—Boston Globe/Getty Images by [Joan E. Greve](/author/joan-greve/) ## Joan E. Greve Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 17, 2014 9:59 PM CUT Mark your calendars for 2121: that’s the year when women may finally achieve equal representation in the United States’ leading legislative body, according to a [new study](http://www.iwpr.org/publications/pubs/building-women2019s-political-careers-strengthening-the-pipeline-to-higher-office "undefined") by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research. The think tank estimated in its May report that it would take over a century before women made up 50 percent of Congress (they currently make up 20 percent). “We can’t wait 107 years to ensure women’s voices are equally represented in the halls of government,” wrote Marni Allen, the Executive Director of the group Political Parity, in response to the [study](http://www.iwpr.org/blog/2014/06/03/lets-shift-up-womens-representation/ "undefined"), called “Shifting Gears: How Women Navigate the Road to Higher Office.” Allen attributed slow progress on a “lack of access to well-resourced networks” for women, as well as“hyperpartisanship” and “lack of diversity among current officeholders.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2891685/100-years-half-women-congress/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2891685/100-years-half-women-congress/"},"headline":"It'll Be Over 100 Years Before Congress is Half Women, Study Finds","datePublished":"2014-06-17T21:59:38.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T08:28:19.272Z","description":"Women make up only 20 percent of the current U.S. Congress","url":"https://time.com/2891685/100-years-half-women-congress/","keywords":["Congress","women","study"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt268b7a8cc806d89f/69869803adae44704d543bca/women-congress-elizabeth-warren.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Joan E. Greve","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/joan-greve/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt268b7a8cc806d89f/69869803adae44704d543bca/women-congress-elizabeth-warren.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren","caption":"U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren","creditText":"Boston Globe—Boston Globe/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/congress/","name":"Congress"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2891685/100-years-half-women-congress/","name":"It'll Be Over 100 Years Before Congress is Half Women, Study Finds"}}]}] ```