Los Angeles

Why are there so few female elected officials in the second largest city in the country? Of 18 elected positions in City Hall, only one is held by a woman — Nury Martinez, who joined the council in July.

By comparison, at least 36 percent of the New York City Council is female (at least, there are 18 members of the women’s caucus, and with 50 council members, do the math) as is the speaker, Christine Quinn.

There are 1.9 million women in Los Angeles. The two senators from California are women, as is the state’s attorney general. ut this city, a bastion of progressive politics, has a curious distinction these days. Only one woman holds elective office in the entire government of Los Angeles, a member of the 15-person City Council from the San Fernando Valley who was sworn in only on Friday.