Women voting? What next-dogs running for Congress?

FACTS ON WOMEN IN POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT...Part Two

SANDY’S LIGHTHOUSE Edition | by Sandy Gresak

A QUOTE TO REMEMBER...
“In 2012, 9 of the 17 Democratic officials we elected in DuPage County were women."
Us (Yep, we did that!)


FIRST WOMEN TO VOTE UNDER 19TH AMENDMENT

We have several claimants to being the first woman to vote under the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

South St. Paul, MN August 27: When word came on August 26, 1920, that the 19th Amendment had been signed into law, South St. Paul quickly scheduled a special election the next morning on a water bond bill, and at 5:30 a.m., eighty women voted.

Hannibal, Missouri, August 31:On August 31, 1920, five days after the 19th amendment was signed into law. At 7 a.m., despite pouring rain, Mrs. Marie Ruoff Byrum, wife of Morris Byrum and daughter-in-law of Democratic committeeman Lacy Byrum, cast her ballot in the first ward. She thus became the first woman to vote in the state of Missouri and the first woman to vote in the United States under the 19th, or Suffrage, Amendment. At 7:01 a.m. in the second ward of Hannibal, Mrs. Walker Harrison cast the second known vote by a woman under the 19th amendment.

About.com Women’s History...(Tab) Women’s Rights


Record Number of Women in Congress in 2013 in Both House, Senate

With 20% of Senate Female, 113th Congress Shatters Previous Totals for Women:
updated November 30, 2012
The 113th Congress is one for the record books with more women than ever holding seats in the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) at Rutgers University, the nation's preeminent institution for the study of women's participation at all levels of government, compiled the following figures.
In terms of sheer numbers alone, women will have a significant impact on Congress in 2013 with a total of 98 women holding seats in the House and Senate. Both legislative bodies are seeing more women than in previous years with record high numbers: 78 women in the House (58 Democrats, 20 Republicans) and 20 in the Senate (16D, 4R). The 2012 election, which proved the power of the women's vote, not only returned female incumbents but also brought a record number of female newcomers to Congress -- 24 of them (20D, 4 R), making it the largest class of female newcomers since 1992. Nearly a quarter of the women serving in the 113th Congress are freshmen.

From Linda Lowen, former About.com Guide

The World's 100 Most Powerful Women - Forbes
FORBES named their top 100 Most Powerful Women in the World. 

7 of the Most Powerful Women are Democrats presently or previously serving our government:
Hillary Clinton, Former Secretary of State, #2;
Michelle Obama, First Lady, #7;
Janet Napolitano, Secretary of Homeland Security, #9;
Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader of House of Representative, #28;
Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary Dept. of Health & Human Services, #31;
Margaret Hamburg, Commissioner-Food & Drug Administration, #61;
and, Mary Schapiro, Chair-Securities & Exchange Commission, #65.

www.forbes.com/power-women