WASHINGTON — Running in the Republican primary for a solid red House district on the outskirts of Houston, first-time candidate Jessica Hart Steinmann has two powerful advantages: an endorsement from President Donald Trump and the backing of organizations and individuals dedicated to bolstering the ranks of GOP women in Congress.

The attorney and former aide to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz said at least half of the Republican women in the House have called or texted to offer their support. As for Trump, “both he and the House leadership (are) really looking to make sure we broaden our base of who’s representing us in D.C.,” said Steinmann, who is running to succeed retiring Rep. Morgan Luttrell, who has also endorsed her.

Republicans have long lagged behind Democrats in recruiting and supporting female candidates for Congress, and the numbers reflect that: There are currently 94 voting Democratic women in the House, compared with 30 Republican women.

But outside groups that back GOP women are hoping to change the tally. And they view Texas, where retirements and redistricting have reshaped the political map, as a prime opportunity.

There are currently seven women in Texas’ 38-member House delegation. And of those seven, just two are Republicans: Reps. Beth Van Duyne and Monica De La Cruz.

In addition to Steinmann, Texas Republican women running for House seats this year include Alex Mealer, a West Point graduate and former Army captain vying for the newly redrawn 9th District; businesswoman Shelly deZevallos and Venezuelan American journalist Carmen Maria Montiel, who are both seeking the open 38th District seat; lobbyist Jessica Karlsruher, who is part of the crowded field competing for the open 10th District; and former Rep. Mayra Flores, who is hoping to launch a comeback in the battleground 34th District.

“Republican women are really strong candidates — there’s usually a 3-point advantage when Republican women are running on a ticket, and yet we only make up about 7 or 8% of Congress right now,” said Tina Ramirez, national spokeswoman for Maggie’s List, a PAC that backs conservative women running for office, including Steinmann, Karlsruher, Montiel and Flores. “So we feel like it’s a really important investment in our future as a party to support these women.”

The campaign arm of Winning For Women, which also backs conservative female candidates, is funding two six-figure ad buys to bolster Steinmann and Mealer. The PAC has also endorsed deZevallos.

Danielle Barrow, the president of Winning for Women Action Fund, said outside groups seeking to elevate Republican women can take a page from the Democratic playbook. She cited EMILY’s List, which has decades of experience recruiting, training and funding female Democratic candidates who support abortion rights.

EMILY’s List has “a big jump-start in terms of getting out there and supporting women running for office, and our effort only started … seven or eight years ago,” Barrow said. “So we are still playing catch-up.”

“But if you look at where we were in 2018 to where we are today, we have made some significant strides,” she added.

Ups and downs

Indeed, the number of GOP women in Congress has risen and receded through the years. The 2018 election was a low point at just 13 women elected to the House. But the numbers rebounded in 2020, with that figure growing to 30, thanks partly to the efforts of New York Rep. Elise Stefanik.

Four years later, 31 Republican women won House races, although just two weren’t incumbents: North Dakota’s Julie Fedorchak and South Carolina’s Sheri Biggs.

And the ranks of GOP women in the House could thin next year: Wyoming’s Harriet Hageman, Louisiana’s Julia Letlow and Iowa’s Ashley Hinson are running for Senate and South Carolina’s Nancy Mace is running for governor. Also, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia resigned her seat last month and Stefanik isn’t seeking reelection.

Both Fedorchak and Biggs ran in safe red seats, providing a new path for groups focused on electing conservative women.

“If we want to see longer-term gains getting more qualified, exceptional Republican women elected to office, we can’t just get … women elected in swing seats,” Barrow said. “We’ve got to make sure that we’re also getting [them] in safer seats, where they can continue to grow in leadership, and Texas certainly provides some great opportunities for that.”

‘Anti-identity politics’

For Republicans, making a pitch for greater representation can be a politically fraught undertaking.

“The Republican Party broadly speaking has really engaged in anti-identity politics,” said Kelly Dittmar, director of research at the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.

The GOP also lacks “the electoral incentive” to diversify, she said. “Over half of the Democratic electorate are women. … So they’ve got more electoral incentive and pressure to be sure that they represent those identities, because that is something that’s sort of demanded of them. But that’s not true among Republican voters.”

Both Steinmann and Mealer have emphasized their perspective as mothers of young children as a way to connect with voters in their largely suburban districts.

“You have to have merit,” said Steinmann, whose children are 1 and 3. “It’s not about identity politics.”

Mealer, who worked in the energy sector after her military career, is the mom of two children under 7. She is running for a redrawn seat that shifted from a deep-blue swath centered in Houston and represented by Democrat Al Green to a seat that Trump would have carried by 20 points in 2024, according to calculations by Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales.

The primary is competitive, but Mealer, like Steinmann, picked up Trump’s endorsement last week.

“I want to deliver real wins for American families,” Mealer said. “I’m not trying to fight for some special demographic.”

But, she added, “being a parent, and particularly a mom to young children, that is a different perspective that I think has a lot of value.”

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—Nick Eskow contributed to this report.

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