THE WOMEN'S CAUCUS

Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues--
109th Congress

Seventy women served in the 109^th Congress. These Congresswomen are nearly as diverse as the constituency of women they represent. They come from 29 states, the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands, and Guam; they are African American, Latina, Asian American, and Caucasian. Together, these women bring to Congress a wealth of experience as mayors, lieutenant governors, state legislators, businesswomen, lawyers, doctors, nurses, educators, community activists, mothers, and grandmothers.

During the 109^th Congress, the Caucus continued its leadership on violence against women and women’s health. They led the effort to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, successfully winning inclusion of several new programs to assist victims of violence and an increase in funding for VAWA programs. The Caucus coordinated letters, including one to the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services and one to the attorney general, requesting full funding for Violence Against Women Act programs. They also worked to reauthorize the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program, sending a letter to the House leadership asking for a floor vote before the end of the Congress an effort that proved successful.

The Caucus continued its work on behalf of women victims of violence in Latin America, and on behalf of women in Iraq and Afghanistan. As a result of the work of the Caucus, in May 2006, the House of Representatives and the Senate passed a resolution bringing attention to the brutal murders of women in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. In July 2005, Caucus members met with their Iraqi counterparts for a roundtable discussion of international women’s issues. Following the roundtable, the Caucus sent a letter to Iraq’s Transnational Assembly urging that rights for women be protected and increased in the new constitution. Iraqi and Afghani women legislators also shadowed members of the Caucus on International Women’s Day 2006. 

Click here for the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues' detailed report on their accomplishments during the 109th Congress (Please note this is a large PDF document and may load slowly).

Women in the House of Representatives
109th Congress

Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, Co-Chairs
Ginny Brown-Waite (R-FL)
Hilda Solis (D-CA)

Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, Vice Chairs
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL)
Lois Capps (D-CA)

Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
Melissa Bean (D-IL)
Shelley Berkley (D-NV)
Judy Biggert (R-IL)
Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)
Mary Bono (R-CA)
Madeleine Bordallo (D-GU)
Corrine Brown (D-FL)
Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV)
Julia Carson (D-IN)
Donna Christensen (D-VI)
Barbara Cubin (R-WY)
Jo Ann Davis (R-VA)
Susan Davis (D-CA)
Diana DeGette (D-CO)
Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT)
Thelma Drake (R-VA)
Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO)
Anna Eshoo(D-CA)
Virginia Foxx (R-NC)
Kay Granger (R-TX)
Jane Harman (D-CA)
Katherine Harris (R-FL)
Melissa Hart (R-PA)
Stephanie Herseth (D-SD)
Darlene Hooley (D-OR)
Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX)
Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)
Nancy L. Johnson (R-CT)
Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-OH)
Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)
Sue W. Kelly (R-NY)
Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-MI)
Barbara Lee (D-CA)
Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)
Nita M. Lowey (D-NY)
Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY)
Betty McCollum (D-MN)
Cynthia McKinney (D-GA)
Cathy McMorris (R-WA)
Carolyn Maloney(D-NY)
Doris Matsui(D-CA)
Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-CA)
Candice Miller (R-MI)
Gwen Moore (D-WI)
Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO)
Sue Myrick (R-NC)
Grace Napolitano (D-CA)
Anne Northup (R-KY)
Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC)
Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
Deborah Pryce (R-OH)
Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA)
Linda Sanchez(D-CA)
Loretta Sanchez (D-CA)
Janice Schakowsky (D-IL)
Jean Schmidt (R-OH)
Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)
Allyson Schwartz (D-PA)
Louise McIntosh Slaughter (D-NY)
Ellen O. Tauscher (D-CA)
Nydia M. Velazquez (D-NY)
Maxine Waters (D-CA)
Diane Watson (D-CA)
Heather Wilson (R-NM)
Lynn C. Woolsey (D-CA)

Women in the Senate--109th Congress

Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
Maria Cantwell (D-WA)
Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY)
Susan Collins (R-ME)
Elizabeth Dole (R-NC)
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX)
Mary Landrieu (D-LA)
Blanche L. Lincoln (D-AR)
Barbara Mikulski (D-MD)
Lisa Murkowski(R-AK)
Patty Murray (D-WA)
Olympia Snowe (R-ME)
Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)

Women's Health:
Reps. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)

Violence Against Women:
Reps. Ginny Brown-Waite (R-FL) and Hilda L. Solis (D-CA)

Women in Business:
Reps. Judy Biggert (R-IL) and Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)

Women in the Military:
Reps. Heather Wilson (R-NM) and Susan Davis (D-CA)

International:
Reps. Deborah Pryce (R-OH) and Betty McCollum (D-MN)