Center for American Women and Politics

1999: Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) became the first woman to serve as secretary of the Senate Republican Conference.

Read more about 1999: Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) became the first woman to serve as secretary of the Senate Republican Conference.

2017: Elizabeth Warren became the first woman to serve as vice chair of the Senate Democratic Conference.

Read more about 2017: Elizabeth Warren became the first woman to serve as vice chair of the Senate Democratic Conference.

1967: Senator Margaret Chase Smith became the first woman to serve as chair of the Senate Republican Conference.

Read more about 1967: Senator Margaret Chase Smith became the first woman to serve as chair of the Senate Republican Conference.

1987: Rep. Mary Rose Oakar (D-OH) became the first woman to serve as vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus.

Read more about 1987: Rep. Mary Rose Oakar (D-OH) became the first woman to serve as vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus.

A Seat at the Table: Congresswomen's Perspectives on Why Their Presence Matters

Drawing on personal interviews with over three-quarters of the women serving in the 114th Congress (2015-17), the authors analyze how these women navigate today's stark partisan divisions, and whether they feel effective in their jobs. Through first-person perspectives, A Seat at the Table looks at what motivates these women's legislative priorities and behavior, details the ways in which women experience service within a male-dominated institution, and highlights why it matters that women sit in the nation's federal legislative chambers. It describes the strategies women employ to overcome any challenges they confront as well as the

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Officeholders

U.S. Congress

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2018: Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) became the first Muslim women elected to Congress.

Read more about 2018: Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) became the first Muslim women elected to Congress.

2018: Sharice Davids (D-KS) and Deb Haaland (D-NM) became the first Native American women elected to Congress.

Read more about 2018: Sharice Davids (D-KS) and Deb Haaland (D-NM) became the first Native American women elected to Congress.

Women Officeholders in 2019

January 3, 2019

Hyde-Smith and the Test of Women’s Descriptive Representation

December 6, 2018

Wendy G. Smooth

Shirley Chisholm’s Birthday Gift: Support Black Women Candidates

November 30, 2018

Kelly Dittmar

Glynda Carr

Fifty years to the day that Shirley Chisholm became the first Black woman elected to the U.S. Congress, five new Black women won seats in the U.S. House. In January, they will join 17 other incumbent Black women representatives, two Black women delegates, and one Black woman senator to represent the largest cohort of Black congresswomen to ever serve in...

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