I won't argue about their popularity. However, even in 1979 there were programs that featured more than one regular female character, i.e. "Charlie's Angels" and I wonder why the creators of "The Dukes of Hazzard" only created one regular female character. The show ran on the Smurfette principle, meaning that there was only one female character to represent women in a sea of male characters.
If there is a future program set in Hazzard County maybe it should have more than one female character. For example, make the mechanic a competent woman.