Democrat from Delaware achieves a couple of firsts
She’s the first woman and first African American to serve state in Congress
On her first day in office, Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester made history for her state — twice.
By being sworn into Congress, she became both the first African American and the first woman to represent Delaware in federal office. That leaves Vermont and Mississippi as the only states to never elect a woman to Congress.
The Delaware Democrat told a room full of supporters Tuesday, just before taking the oath of office, that the significance of her historic election is not lost on her. She held up a special scarf her sister made for her. Printed on it was the image of a document signed with an “X” by her greatgreat-great-grandfather, a former slave, that allowed him to vote in Georgia during the Reconstruction Era.
“This represents where we’ve come from,” she said. “We have the right to stand up; we have the right to serve.”
Vice President Biden, who made a surprise stop at her reception, spoke about the difficult history of race relations in the state of Delaware, which he represented in the Senate for 36 years.
“Don’t tell me that change is not possible,” he said. “Now we’ve got a brilliant, beautiful, principled, competent person, and people looked beyond color, beyond gender, and they picked the very best Delaware has to offer.”
Women of color have made strides in this Congress. There were nine new Democratic members — three in the Senate and six in the House — elected in 2016, according to a tally by the Rutgers Eagleton Institute of Politics. The total number of women in Congress is the same as last year.
Sitting in her freshly painted office, Rochester pointed to several hurdles that prevent women from fully participating in politics.
“It’s everything from money to access to positions, to leadership opportunities and even our own personal belief that we can do it,” she said.
Rochester, 54, has broken barriers in the past as the first African-American woman to serve as Delaware’s secretary of Labor. She also served as CEO of the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League. Until this week, she had never served in elected office.
She began her career in politics as an intern, then a caseworker for Democrat Tom Carper, when he was a congressman. She became his adviser and Labor secretary when he served as governor. Sen. Carper said at the reception Tuesday that he often encouraged Rochester to run for mayor, but Rochester would reply that she wanted to serve as Delaware’s congresswoman — even when he held the seat.
“I said, ‘Well, I’m the congressman,’ ” he recalled, laughing. “And she said, ‘Well, I want your job.’ I said, ‘Like, right now?’ She said, ‘Eventually.’ ”
Rochester said a small state such as Delaware — or Vermont, which also has only three federal offices — offers fewer opportunities for newcomers to break into politics.
“People looked beyond color, beyond gender, and they picked the very best Delaware has to offer.” Vice President Biden