46th Vice President Kamala Harris put herself on the big stage for the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Her campaign was riveting for the nation and stood out to all the women and proved, despite her loss, that the fight for representation and equality in America can not end and that women must continually pursue roles in the U.S. government, especially women of color. Therefore, here are women trailblazers in the American government throughout history.
Author’s note: In my research, there was a lack of information on some women including those of hispanic and Indigenous ethnic backgrounds so I apologize if I’m missing anyone.
Presidents
Victoria Claflin Woodhull
Woodhull was the first woman to run for president in 1872. She was a leader in the Women’s Suffrage movement, a popular public speaker, a newspaper publisher, and the first woman to produce a Wall Street film. She also introduced to the public Karl Marx’s work The Communist Manifesto.
Patsy Takemoto Mink
Mink was the first woman of color in the U.S. HOR and Asian-American woman elected to Congress in 1964 and to run for president in 1972. She wrote bills like Title IX, the Early Childhood Education Act, and the Women’s Educational Equity Act.
Shirley Chisholm
Chisholm was the first Black woman elected to Congress in the House of Representatives in 1968 and the first Black woman to run for president also in 1972. She was born to two immigrants and advocated for anti-poverty policies, educational reform, and was a founder for both the Congressional Black Caucus and the National Women’s Political Caucus.
Hillary Clinton
Clinton was a major-party candidate for presidency in 2016. Clinton has a long history in politics as a U.S. Senator, First Lady, secretary of the state and a lawyer.
Vice Presidents
Charlotta Spears Bass
Bass was the first Black American woman to run for Vice President. She was one of the first Black women to operate a newspaper, fought against racial violence, and discrimination in schools, housing, and the job market through her writing. She was an advocate in the Civils Rights Movement.
Kamala Harris
Harris became the first Black and South Asian woman Vice President in 2021 and ran for president in the 2024 election in only 90 days. She was the first of mixed race to run as a major-party candidate.
Senators
Martha Hughes Cannon
Elected to the Utah State Senate, Cannon was the first woman state senator in the country in 1896. She was a skilled physician, suffragist, and progressive public health reformer.
Carol Moseley Braun
Braun was the first Black American woman senator from Illinois in 1993. She was a civil rights movement leader and pursued law.
Mazie K. Hirono
Hirono was the first Asian-American woman senator in 2013 representing Hawaii. She held a chair in the HOR in 1980 and has run for other office positions. She works to get more women in office and is also a lawyer.
House of Representatives (HOR) and State Legislature
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
In 1866, Stanton was the first woman to run for the U.S. House of Representatives, despite her ineligibility to vote and receiving only 24 of 12,000 votes. She ran as an Independent from New York State. She was an abolitionist, author, and lecturer. She worked with other leading women at that time like Susan B. Anthony to lead the women’s rights and suffrage movements.
Shirley Chisholm
Chisholm was the first Black woman elected to Congress in the House of Representatives in 1968 and the first Black woman to run for president in 1972. She was born to two immigrants and advocated for anti-poverty policies, educational reform, and was a founder for both the Congressional Black Caucus and the National Women’s Political Caucus.
Other Trailblazers
Susanna Salter
Salter was the first woman to be elected mayor in Argonia, Kansas and in the country. Unfortunately, she only served one year with $1.00 pay (About $33 today) in 1887.
Clara Cressingham, Carrie C. Holly, and Frances Klock
The Colorado HOR, they were the first three women elected to a state legislature in 1894. All were advocates for the woman’s rights and suffrage movement. Cressingham had previous experience advocating in school districts and a short political career. Holly was an advocate, lawyer, and school board member prior to her role. Klock worked for the Woman’s Relief Corps of the GAR to look after veterans and in 1984 she won state representative from Arapahoe County (Denver).
Cora Belle Reynolds Anderson
Anderson was the first Native American woman in a state legislature elected to the Michigan State House of Representatives in 1924. She organized the first public health service in Baraga County and a public health advocate, fighting against alcoholism and tuberculosis.
Minnie Buckingham Harper
Harper was appointed to the West Virginia State House of Representatives as the first Black woman in a state legislature in 1928. She unfortunately died in the middle of her term. She earned her spot after her husband died.
Fedelina Lucero Gallegos and Porfirria Hidalgo Saiz
In 1930, Gallegos and Saiz were the first Latina women to be elected to the New Mexico House of Representatives, therefore, the first latina state legislators. Little information is found about them.
Crystal Dreda Bird Fauset
Fauset was the first Black woman elected for the state legislative office, serving in Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives in 1939.
Ketanji Brown Jackson
Jackson is the 116th and the first black woman sworn in as a U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice in 2022. She is a lawyer and a jurist.
Michelle Obama
Obama was the first Black First Lady after Obama won the 2008 election. She was a heavy advocate for education, nutrition, and poverty awareness. She invested in programs like the Head Start program to support her fight for education.
