

1884
Belva Lockwood, the first woman to argue a case in front of the Supreme Court (1880), runs for president under the banner of the Equal Rights Party.More




July 1964
Margaret Chase Smith becomes the first woman to have her name placed in nomination for President by a major party. More

January 1972
Shirley Chisholm announces her bid for the presidency, becoming the first African American woman to seek a major party’s nomination for U.S. President.More


May 1972
Patsy Mink withdraws her candidacy for U.S. president, which she had announced ahead of the nation’s first primaries.More


July 1972
Shirley Chisholm received 151.95 delegate votes at the Democratic National Convention. Before the convention, she campaigned throughout the country and was on the ballot in twelve primaries in what was largely an educational campaign.More


July 1976
Ellen McCormack won 22 votes at the Democratic National Convention after competing in 20 state primaries for the Democratic presidential nomination as an anti-abortion candidate. She became the first woman to qualify for federal campaign matching funds and qualified for Secret Service protection. More

1980
Ellen McCormack ran for president again as the candidate of the Right to Life Party, winning more than 30,000 votes from three states.More


November 1980
Beginning in 1980 and continuing in every presidential election since, a gender gap has been apparent in the vote, with a greater proportion of women than men preferring the Democrat in each case.More


July 1984
Sonia Johnson becomes the first third party candidate for U.S. president eligible for primary matching funds.More


July 1984
Geraldine Ferraro was named by Walter F. Mondale as his choice for the vice-presidency. At the Democratic National Convention, she officially became the first woman vice-presidential nominee of a major U.S. party.More


September 1987
After exploring a presidential bid, Pat Schroeder dropped out of the race before the primaries began because she could not raise the necessary funds.More


1988
Lenora Fulani makes her first bid for U.S. president as a candidate for the New Alliance Party.More


1992
Lenora Fulani makes her second bid for U.S. president as a candidate for the New Alliance Party.Fulani campaign speech (C-SPAN, January 2, 1992) More


March 1999
Elizabeth Dole announces her exploratory committee for a presidential bid in the 2000 election.More


October 1999
Elizabeth Dole drops out of the presidential race before primaries begin, citing fundraising challenges.More


February 2003
Carol Moseley Braun announces her decision to form an exploratory committee for a presidential bid in the 2004 election.More



January 2007
Hillary Clinton announces her bid for U.S. president via an online video titled “I’m in.”More


June 2008
After winning nine of the last 16 primaries and caucuses and nearly 18 million votes nationwide, Hillary Clinton concedes the Democratic nomination.More


August 2008
Sarah Palin becomes the second woman vice-presidential nominee from a major U.S. party and the first Republican woman nominee for the vice-presidency.More


November 2008
Black women’s rate of voting exceeds all other race x gender subgroups for the first time in U.S. history.More



January 2012
Michele Bachmann withdraws her candidacy for U.S. president after coming in last among six Republicans in the Iowa caucuses.More


July 2012
Jill Stein wins nomination as Green Party candidate for president with running mate Cheri Honkala.More





July 2016
Hillary Clinton is formally nominated as the Democratic party candidate for president. More

July 2016
Hillary Clinton accepts the nomination as the Democratic party candidate for president. More