On April 9, Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) was sworn in to replace former Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS), who resigned last month. Her appointment increases the number of women Senators to 23 and the total number of women serving in the 115th Congress to 112. Eighty-nine women currently serve in the House of Representatives, including Delegates from American Samoa, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Sen. Hyde-Smith previously served as Mississippi’s commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce; she also served for twelve years in the Mississippi Senate. She is the first woman to represent Mississippi in the Senate, and is expected to serve on the Appropriations; Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry; and Rules and Administration Committees.
