Pathway Staff Diversity in Senate Personal Offices

By LaShonda Brenson, Ph.D., and Kimberly Victor

This report, Pathway Staff Diversity in Senate Personal Offices, provides evidence regarding the lack of racial diversity among U.S. Senate “pathway” staff. In this report, pathway staff refers to positions held on the pathway to top staff positions in the Senate. Pathway staff include deputy chiefs of staff, senior advisers, legislative assistants, counsels, and press secretaries/deputy communications directors in the personal offices of U.S. senators. The data reflects Senate employment as of Jan. 31, 2024.

Key findings demonstrate that:

• • People of color account for 41.1 percent of the U.S. population, but just 21.4 percent of pathway staff in the Senate are people of color. African Americans are 13.6 percent of the U.S. population, but only 5.4 percent of Senate pathway staff. Latina/os are 19.1 percent of the U.S. population, but only 6.8 percent of Senate pathway staff. Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders are 6.6 percent of the U.S. population, but 5.4 percent of Senate pathway staff.

• • The percentage of white top staff (i.e., chiefs of staff, legislative directors, and communications directors) in 2023 (84.2 percent) was higher than that of white pathway staff (78.6 percent). However, the percentage of pathway staff of color is higher than the percentage of top staff of color in 2023. Staffers of color made up 15.8 percent of Senate personal office top staff and make up 21.4 percent of pathway staff in the Senate.

• • Black staff have the most significant difference among staff of color between the percentage of top staff and that of pathway staff in the Senate. In 2023, African Americans accounted for 2.1 percent of Senate top staff, but 5.4 percent of Senate pathway staff. Latina/os accounted for 5.8 percent of Senate top staff, but 6.8 percent of Senate pathway staff. Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders accounted for 4.5 percent of Senate top staff, but 5.4 percent of Senate pathway staff.

• • Pathway staff of color comprise a larger percentage of Senate Democrats staff than Senate Republicans, but both parties fall short of full representation. People of color comprise 14.0 percent of Republican voters in 2022 and 9.7 percent of Republican Senate pathway staff. People of color account for 36.0 percent of Democratic voters in 2022 and 30.4 percent of Democratic Senate pathway staff.

• • African American voters were underrepresented among pathway staff in Senate Democratic offices. African Americans accounted for 17.0 percent of Democratic voters in 2022, but only 8.3 percent of Democratic Senate pathway staff. African Americans represented 1.0 percent of Republican voters and 1.6 percent of Republican Senate pathway staff.

• • While Black senators only account for four percent of the U.S. Senate, they employ 21.1 percent of the Black pathway staff in the U.S. Senate.

• Senators under 60 years old had the highest percentage of pathway staff of color at 29.6 percent compared to about 14.8 percent for senators 60 to 69 years old and 19.5 percent for senators 70 years old or older.

Read the report here.

Watch our explainer video here.

This report was covered in Politico and Reuters.