Day ushers in a new era of divided government for President Donald Trump with the House the most diverse it has been in the history of the U. S.
WASHINGTON — Illinois Democratic freshmen Lauren Underwood, Sean Casten and Jesus “Chuy” Garcia were sworn-in on Thursday as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reclaimed the gavel for a second time, ushering in a new era of divided government for President Donald Trump with the House the most diverse it has been in the history of the U. S.
Voters in November, Pelosi said, “demanded a new dawn.”
Underwood and Casten, each unknown long shots when they started their Herculean campaigns, defeated Republicans Randy Hultgren and Peter Roskam in their suburban districts in their first bid for elected office, part of the blue wave the House Democrats rode to win back the House they lost after the 2010 elections.
Garcia, a former Chicago alderman, Illinois state senator, Cook County Board member and mayoral candidate, is a political and legislative veteran, taking the baton in a cakewalk contest from now-former Rep. Luis Gutierrez, who anointed him as his successor in the only district in the state of Illinois created to elect a Hispanic.
“I am particularly proud to be the woman Speaker of the House of this Congress, which marks the 100th year of women having the right to vote,” said Pelosi, who took her first turn as speaker between 2007 and 2011.
According to the PEW Research Center, a record 102 women will serve in the new 116 th Congress, making up 23.4 percent of the voting members of the House.
Pelosi, the first female speaker — and still the only female speaker a dozen years later — comes to power during a partial federal government shutdown after pushing back challenges to her power from other Democrats.
