January 21, 2025

Get Ready to Run® New Jersey

Register for this year’s Ready to Run® New Jersey, our flagship program, which has trained more than 5,000 women to run for office, seek appointed positions, and work on or manage campaigns. Ready to Run® NJ offers two tracks tailored for women at different stages in their political careers: Track 1 - “I'm Ready to Run, Now What?” and Track 2 - “I'm Not Ready to Run Yet, But…” Ready to Run® also includes three pre-conference sessions for Asian American women, Black women, and Latinas.  

Not in New Jersey? CAWP's Ready to Run® National Network partners are hosting upcoming campaign training programs in Iowa (February 21st, March 28th, and April 25th), Pennsylvania (January 24-25), and Utah (March 15th).

Women of Power Networking Reception

Join influential leaders at Women of Power, a unique nonpartisan networking reception co-hosted by women in the New Jersey Legislature. This event supports CAWP programs like Ready to Run® and NEW Leadership®, empowering the next generation of women leaders. Be part of the movement for women’s political equality:

As the Trump presidential Cabinet takes shape, CAWP is monitoring how many women are being named to these critical leadership roles. Our High-Level Presidential Appointments in the Trump-Vance Administration and Women Appointed to Presidential Cabinets pages will track the progress of appointments in real-time as they move through confirmation hearings.  



Only 12 U.S. presidents (5D, 7R) have appointed women to Cabinet or Cabinet-level positions, resulting in 66 women holding a total of 74 roles (with eight serving in two different posts). Forty-three appointments came from Democratic presidents and twenty-three from Republicans. 

In 1933, Frances Perkins became the first woman appointed to a Cabinet position as secretary of labor under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Additional firsts include Patricia Roberts Harris as the first Black woman in a Cabinet (secretary of housing and urban development, 1977), Aída Álvarez as the first Latina (small business administrator, 1997), and Elaine Chao as the first Asian American/Pacific Islander women (secretary of labor, 2001). No woman has ever held the roles of secretary of defense or secretary of veterans affairs.

The Biden administration boasted a majority-women Cabinet for the first time in history, with thirteen women serving in Cabinet (6) and Cabinet-level (7) positions, representing 52% of its 25 positions. Will the incoming Trump administration surpass this milestone or fall short? To date, Trump has nominated nine women, making it unlikely to exceed previous records. However, the final outcome will depend on the progression of these nominees through their confirmation hearings.

Follow our High-Level Presidential Appointments in the Trump-Vance Administration page or Women Appointed to Presidential Cabinets page or CAWP social media for live updates on this question.

The application for CAWP’s Susan N. Wilson NEW Leadership® New Jersey program is now live on our website!

This immersive five-day residential summer institute in Rutgers-New Brunswick, which includes a day engaging with state government and meeting public officials in Trenton, educates undergraduate students about women's public leadership. The institute gives them the tools to become more involved in the political process, introduces them to successful women leaders, and teaches skills like networking, public speaking, navigating the legislative process, and developing actionable policy positions. It is the perfect opportunity to explore one’s leadership potential and lay the building blocks for a career in advocacy, leadership, and politics. 

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