How many women have publicly accused Donald Trump of sexual assault or misconduct by year?
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Executive summary
Reporting across reputable outlets and compiled lists counts roughly two dozen women who have publicly accused Donald Trump of sexual assault or other forms of sexual misconduct, but the exact number varies by outlet and grew over time — commonly cited totals are “at least 25,” “26 women,” and, by late 2024, about 27 — and no provided source gives a definitive, year-by-year tabulation [1] [2] [3].
1. Reported totals: what major outlets say
Encyclopedic and news compilations summarize the corpuses of allegations differently: Wikipedia and several long-form summaries say Trump has been accused by “at least 25 women” dating to the 1970s [1], Business Insider published a list citing “at least 26 women” who accused him of misconduct since the 1970s [2], and Axios reported that by October 2024 new reporting had brought the public count to roughly 27 women [3].
2. A higher number when counting incidents, not women
Some compilers count separate incidents rather than unique accusers; for example, one summary reported 43 separate allegations of “unwanted sexual contact” tied to roughly 26 women, illustrating how incident-based and person-based tallies diverge [4].
3. Key moments when allegations surfaced publicly
The public record shows clear surges: many allegations first emerged during or immediately before the 2016 campaign (the Access Hollywood tape’s release and reporting that fall prompted several women to go public) and remain a recurring subject in subsequent years; E. Jean Carroll went public in 2019 and later pursued civil litigation that resulted in a 2023 jury finding Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation in her case [5] [6]. Additional reporting and new claimants appeared through 2023–2024, prompting outlets to update their totals [3] [7].
4. Why counts change: inclusion criteria and new reporting
Totals vary because outlets apply different rules: some include only women who went on the record to major outlets, others include women identified in books or court filings, some include prior spouses’ depositions, and some count every separate allegation as a distinct entry; the 19th and Guardian timelines, as well as books like All the President’s Women, expanded the roster by including material from investigative reporting and memoirs, which affects headline totals [8] [7].
5. Legal outcomes and what they do (and don’t) change
Legal rulings have affected public attention but not a single canonical list: E. Jean Carroll obtained civil judgments after suing for defamation and assault, and a jury in 2023 found Trump liable in her case [5] [6], but most other accusers did not obtain criminal convictions and some civil claims were dismissed or withdrawn, a reality many news organizations note when summarizing allegations [3] [9].
6. Direct answer and limits of available reporting
Directly answering “how many women have publicly accused Donald Trump of sexual assault or misconduct by year” is not possible from the supplied sources because none provides a complete, source-verified count broken down by calendar year; the best-supported, repeatedly cited figures in the provided reporting are “at least 25” (general encyclopedic summaries) to “26” (Business Insider/other compilers), rising to about 27 by October 2024 as new reporting surfaced — and some outlets report 43 separate incidents tied to roughly 26 women, reflecting different counting methods [1] [2] [4] [3]. Any year-by-year spreadsheet would require assembling primary publication dates for each accusation from the original reporting and legal filings, a task beyond the scope of the sources provided here.