After gains, the number of women in state legislatures has leveled

For close to 20 years, the number of women being elected to state houses across the country was a steady increase. However, in the last 16 years, that number has since plateaued.

According the Pew Charitable Trust, the reason can vary, but some point to many younger women worrying how to balance a political career with family obligations.

Others reasons include party leaders less likely to recruit female candidates while women are less likely than men to run without being asked.

The research showed that a quarter of the state legislatures are women while in Arizona that number is 36 percent. Colorado and Vermont lead the nation with 41 percent of its state legislatures made up by women while Louisiana rank at the bottom with just 12 percent of women making up the Louisiana state house.

Many political observers credited women with helping end the 2013 government shutdown by saying that women are better setting aside egos to get work done.

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