07 Nov 1916: Representative-elect Jeannette Rankin
“I may be the first woman member of Congress but I won’t be the last.”
On this day in 1916, Jeannette Rankin was elected as a representative from Montana. She was the first woman voted to national office, four years before the 19th Amendment granted women’s suffrage.
Rankin’s portrait, by Sharon Sprung (2004). (Collection of the U.S. House of Representatives)
Some more details:
- She was a member of the Republican Party
- She led the charge for a Constitutional Amendment granting universal suffrage, which was defeated in 1918 but passed both chambers in 1919
- During her first term, Montana changed its representation from two at-large seats to two districts; Rankin, now situated in a heavily Democratic area, ran for Senate instead in 1918, finishing third
- She was elected to a second term in 1940; she was the only House member to vote against the declaration of war against Japan
- Both of her terms coincided with U.S. entry into World Wars
- She represents Montana in Statuary Hall, along with artist Charles Marion “Kid” Russell
Besides voting against U. S. entry into the Second World War she also voted against U. S. entry into the First World War. She is one of only a few who voted against the First World War. She is one of only a few who voted against the Second World War. She is certainly the only person who voted against both of them.