Just call them Madam Mayor. The Bay State has 11 women mayors, more than ever before.
That means women run 25 percent of the 44 Massachusetts cities that have a mayor-council form of government. And that, according to a study due to be released today, is the highest rate in the state's history.
"To see this kind of jump in a couple of years means that women are perhaps reaching for and achieving representation in ways that they had not in the past," said Carol Hardy-Fanta, director of the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy at the University of Massachusetts at Boston, which conducted the study. "It's a sign of the times."
The women include E. Denise Simmons in Cambridge, Lisa Wong in Fitchburg, and Gloucester Mayor Carolyn Kirk of Gloucester.
"I think it's all about role models, that when women see other women who are in mayor roles, [in] big or little cities, it encourages women to say, 'Maybe I can do that,' " said Kirk, who is about two months into her first term. "I know I looked to [Salem mayor] Kim Driscoll and said: 'Wow! She's got three kids, I've got two.' She provided that possibility to me that I could make it work in my life, because she was making it work."
Mayor Susan M. Kay of Weymouth, who was elected in 2007, says that past political service is the reason Massachusetts is now seeing more women in power.
"It's sort of a feeder system, and maybe we'll see more women get involved because they were selectmen, they have been Town Meeting members," she said. "I think women are taking more chances."
It's not all good news for women, however.
The center's data also show that last year, 37 percent of municipalities did not have any women on their governing bodies and that five of the state's largest cities - Boston, Brockton, Quincy, Fall River, and Lynn - have never elected a woman mayor. There are low numbers on city and town councils and boards of selectmen, as well, the study found.
"That means there are a lot of municipalities where women don't have a voice," Hardy-Fanta said. "We're really concerned about women's perspectives about what's happening in these cities and towns and also the opportunities of women politically to gain expertise and run for higher office."
It took Konstantina B. Lukes quite a while to reach the mayor's office in Worcester. She spent close to 30 years on the School Committee and City Council combined and often had to play second fiddle to Timothy P. Murray, former mayor and now lieutenant governor. Lukes was elected mayor in 2007 after she received the most votes of all council candidates.
"I will consider it a historical event when I have a quorum of the City Council in the ladies' room," she said in an interview. "It's going to take more women to vote for women . . . [and] women have to accept themselves in leadership positions."
Hardy-Fanta said she's not sure what the turning point was for the women who have successfully run for mayor. It could be an increase in confidence or something as simple as having been elected to a lower office like city councilor.
The center, which conducted the study of local female mayors using data from city websites and the Massachusetts Municipal Association, will present a fact sheet of findings today during a panel discussion with several mayors at the UMass-Boston Campus Center Ballroom.
Patricia Mikes, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Municipal Association, said she is not sure what is driving the surge. She has been with the association for 13 years and said she had never seen such high numbers.
"It's an interesting phenomenon," Mikes said. "I believe it's like anything else in life, in jobs, or whatever: It's what the needs are in the community. . . . You want the best person for the job, and, coincidentally, it may be a woman."
Several mayors said that women can bring perspectives different from those of men. Society as a whole has seen dramatic changes in the roles of men and women in the workplace and at home.
Simmons said she definitely brings a female sensibilty to the table in Cambridge, as well as her perspective as an African-American and lesbian.
"As a woman, because of things I do as a woman, because I am a caretaker and I have children, I take that into consideration when I plan meetings," she said.
Wong, the Fitchburg mayor, is the first Asian-American woman to be a mayor in Massachusetts. In an interview, she said achievements by women in office can encourage others to get involved.
"Something like this is a way to send a signal to women who may have been thinking" about running for office, she said.
Meanwhile, Driscoll and other mayors said gender didn't play much of a role in their campaigns, but now that they are in office, they find themselves bouncing ideas off one another and providing shoulders to lean on. Salem is dealing with a multimillion-dollar midyear school budget deficit, and Driscoll said she often turns to Wong and Kirk for advice.
"It's helpful, frankly, to talk to someone who understands that you had to bathe three kids and put dinner on the table before a council meeting," she said.
Clare Higgins, who has served as mayor of Northampton since her election in 1999, said she definitely learns from the women in the mayoral circle.
"I think we all bring our whole life experience," Higgins said.
Erin Ailworth can be reached at eailworth@globe.com. Milton J. Valencia can be reached at valencia@globe.com.
