Women in the United States Senate - wikipedia Women in the United States Senate Rebecca Latimer Felton, the first female member of the United States Senate, who served representing Georgia for one day in 1922. There have been 52 total women in the United States Senate since its establishment in 1789. The first woman who served as a U.S. Senator, Rebecca Latimer Felton, represented Georgia for a single day in 1922. The first woman elected to the Senate was Hattie Caraway from Arkansas in 1932. Fifteen of the women who have served were appointed ; seven of those were appointed to succeed their deceased husbands. As of April 9, 2018 when Cindy Hyde - Smith of Mississippi was sworn in, the 115th United States Congress has 23 female Senators out of 100 ( 23 % ), three more than both the 113th and 114th Congresses, and an all - time high. Contents 1 History 2 Currently serving women U.S. Senators 3 Election, selection and family 4 Firsts and onlies 4.1 Houses served 4.2 Defeated incumbents 4.3 Senators from the same state 5 List of states represented by women 6 List of female U.S. Senators 7 Graphs 7.1 Histograph 7.2 Time series 8 Pregnancies 9 See also 10 Notes 11 References 12 External links History One woman ( Barbara Mikulski ) was re-elected and four women were elected to the Senate in 1992, the `` Year of the Woman ''. Top Row ( L-R ) : Patty Murray, Barbara Mikulski, Barbara Boxer. Bottom Row : Carol Moseley - Braun, Diane Feinstein. Eight women Senators meet in 1997. Left to right : Patty Murray, Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe, Carol Moseley - Braun, Kay Bailey Hutchison, Barbara Mikulski, Mary Landrieu, and Dianne Feinstein. By the 111th United States Congress ( 2009 -- 2011 ), the number of women Senators had increased to 17, including 4 Republicans and 13 Democrats For its first 130 years in existence, the Senate 's membership was entirely male. Until 1920, few women ran for the Senate. Until the 1990s, very few were elected. This paucity of women was due to many factors, including the lack of women 's suffrage in many states until ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, women 's limited access to higher education until the mid-1900s, public perceptions of gender roles, and barriers to women 's advancement such as sex discrimination, which still plays a factor in their limited numbers today. The first woman in the U.S. Senate was Rebecca Latimer Felton, who served representing Georgia for only one day in 1922. Hattie Caraway became the first woman to win election to the Senate ( Arkansas ), in 1932. Margaret Chase Smith was the first woman to serve in both the House and Senate ; she first served in the House, and began serving in the Senate in 1949. Margaret Chase Smith won her 1960 race for Senate in the nation 's first ever race pitting two women ( her and Lucia Cormier ) against each other for a Senate seat. Muriel Humphrey Brown was the first and only Second Lady to serve in the United States Senate. After her husband, Hubert Humphrey, was defeated in the 1968 presidential election, he ran for his old Senate seat from Minnesota. Following his unexpected death, Brown was appointed by the Governor of Minnesota in 1978 to fill her late husband 's Senate seat. She served for less than one year, and did not seek reelection. In 1978, Nancy Kassebaum became the first woman ever elected to a full term in the Senate without her husband having previously served in Congress. Since 1978, there has always been at least one woman in the Senate. The first woman to be elected to the Senate without any family connections was Paula Hawkins ( R - FL ), elected in 1980. There were still few women in the Senate near the end of the 20th century, long after women began to make up a significant portion of the membership of the House. The trend of few women in the Senate began to change in the wake of the Clarence Thomas Supreme Court nomination hearings, and the subsequent election of the 103rd United States Congress in 1992, which was dubbed the `` Year of the Woman. '' In addition to Barbara Mikulski, who was reelected that year ( 1992 ), four women were elected to the Senate, all Democrats. They were Patty Murray of Washington, Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois, and Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, both of California. Carol Moseley Braun, who was African - American, was the first woman of color in the Senate. She was also the first woman to defeat an incumbent senator, having toppled Senator Alan Dixon in the Democratic primary in 1992. Later that year, Dianne Feinstein was the first woman to defeat an incumbent senator from a different party when she defeated appointed Senator John Seymour in a special election. Feinstein entered the Senate in 1992 as the first female Jewish senator. Bathroom facilities for women in the Senate on the Senate Chamber level were first provided in 1992. Women were not allowed to wear pants on the Senate floor until 1993. In 1993, Senators Barbara Mikulski and Carol Moseley Braun wore pants onto the floor in defiance of the rule, and female support staff followed soon after, with the rule being amended later that year by Senate Sergeant - at - Arms Martha Pope to allow women to wear pants on the floor so long as they also wore a jacket. The first time two female senators from the same state served concurrently was beginning in 1993 ; Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer ( both D - CA ) were both elected in 1992, with Feinstein taking office that same year ( as the result of a special election ) and Boxer taking office in 1993 until 2016 when Boxer retired and Feinstein was joined by Kamala Harris. In June 1993, Kay Bailey Hutchison won a special election in Texas, and joined Kassebaum as a fellow female Republican senator. These additions significantly diminished the popular perception of the Senate as an exclusive `` boys ' club. '' Since 1992, there has been at least one woman elected to the Senate every two years with one exception, the 2004 elections. Since 2004, at least two women have been elected to the Senate every two years, with the exception of 2010, when only one woman was elected. Senator Olympia Snowe arrived in the Senate in 1995, having previously served in the House of Representatives and both houses of the Maine state legislature. She and later Debbie Stabenow of Michigan are the only women to have served in both houses of a state legislature and both houses of the federal legislature. In 2000, Stabenow and Maria Cantwell became the first women to defeat incumbent elected senators in a general election, unseating Senators Spencer Abraham and Slade Gorton respectively. Hillary Clinton was the first and only First Lady to run for and / or to win a Senate seat ; she joined the Senate in 2001. She is also the only female U.S. Senator ( and only woman ) to be the nominee of a major party for President of the United States, which occurred in 2016. In 2008, Kay Hagan became the first woman to unseat a female incumbent, Elizabeth Dole. Upon the opening of the 112th Congress in 2011, New Hampshire Democrat Jeanne Shaheen was joined by newly elected Republican Kelly Ayotte, making the first female tandem senators that do not belong to the same party. Barbara Mikulski became the longest - serving woman senator ( and Congresswoman ) in 2012 ; she retired in 2017 as still the longest - serving after serving for forty years. In 2012, there was a second `` Year of the Woman '' with the election of five women and the reelection of six women. This beat the record of four new female Senators from 1992 and set the record of five new women and eleven female Senators in one Senate class. The five new women were Democrat Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Republican Deb Fischer of Nebraska, Democrat Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Democrat Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, and Democrat Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. The driving force behind the addition of four of the Senators elected was one of the original senators from 1992, Patty Murray, who led the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which recruited Baldwin, Heitkamp, Hirono, and Warren, along with several other candidates who did not win. Hirono was the first Asian - American woman and first Buddhist person in the Senate, and Baldwin was the first openly gay person in the Senate. With 14 years of experience in the House of Representatives, Baldwin held the highest seniority of her entering class of senators in 2012. Joni Ernst became the first female combat veteran to serve in the Senate when she joined in 2015. In 2016, a record 15 women were their party 's nominee for Senate, 12 of whom were truly competitive. Louisiana also had a female senatorial candidate, but she did not make the run - off. Catherine Cortez Masto was among those elected in 2016 ; she was the first Latina Senator. In 2016, Kamala Harris was the first woman to defeat another woman from the same party, U.S. Representative Loretta Sanchez, in a general election. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire hold the distinction of being the first and second women elected both governor and senator of a state ; both served as Governor of New Hampshire and served together in the Senate starting in 2017. In 2017 Tammy Duckworth became the first female double amputee in the U.S. Senate. Duckworth became the first woman to give birth while holding a seat in the United States Senate in 2018. Duckworth gave birth to Maile Pearl on April 9, 2018. Shortly afterward, rules were changed so that a Senator has the right to bring a child under one year old on the Senate floor and breastfeed them during votes. The day after those rules were changed, Maile became the first baby on the Senate floor when Duckworth brought her. Cindy Hyde - Smith ( R ) joined the Senate in April 2018. Cumulatively, 34 female U.S. Senators have been Democrats, while 18 have been Republicans. As of 2018, no female U.S. Senator has ever died in office. Currently serving women U.S. Senators In January 2017, the number of serving women Senators reached a record of 21, 16 of whom were Democrats, and the other 5 being Republicans. Democratic Senators Barbara Mikulski and Barbara Boxer did not seek reelection in 2016, while four new Democratic senators were elected : Catherine Cortez Masto ( Nevada ), Tammy Duckworth ( Illinois ), Kamala Harris ( California ), and Maggie Hassan ( New Hampshire ). Incumbent Republican Senator Kelly Ayotte ( New Hampshire ) lost to Hassan. Both of the seats that changed hands from Republican to Democrat were won by women : Duckworth and Hassan. In January 2018, after the appointment of Democrat Tina Smith of Minnesota to the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Al Franken, and in April 2018 after the appointment of Republican Cindy Hyde - Smith of Mississippi to the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Thad Cochran, the number of female Senators increased to 23, with 17 being Democrats and 6 being Republicans. For four states, California, Minnesota, New Hampshire and Washington, both senators are women. Seven female senators had previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives -- a distinction long held by only Margaret Chase Smith -- Sens. Stabenow, Cantwell, Gillibrand, Baldwin, Hirono, Capito, and Duckworth. Class State Name Party Prior experience First took office Alaska Lisa Murkowski Republican Alaska House of Representatives 2002 1957 California Dianne Feinstein Democratic President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, Mayor of San Francisco, gubernatorial nominee 1992 1933 California Kamala Harris Democratic Attorney General of California, District Attorney of San Francisco 2017 1964 Hawaii Mazie Hirono Democratic Hawaii House of Representatives, Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii, gubernatorial nominee, U.S. House of Representatives 2013 1947 Illinois Tammy Duckworth Democratic U.S. House of Representatives 2017 1968 Iowa Joni Ernst Republican Montgomery County Auditor ; Iowa Senate 2015 1970 Maine Susan Collins Republican Deputy Maine Treasurer ; gubernatorial nominee 1952 Massachusetts Elizabeth Warren Democratic Special Advisor to the President for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 2013 1949 Michigan Debbie Stabenow Democratic Michigan House of Representatives, Michigan Senate, U.S. House of Representatives 2001 1950 Minnesota Amy Klobuchar Democratic - Farmer - Labor Hennepin County Attorney 2007 1960 Minnesota Tina Smith Democratic - Farmer - Labor Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota 2018 1958 Mississippi Cindy Hyde - Smith Republican Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce 2018 1959 Missouri Claire McCaskill Democratic Missouri House of Representatives, State Auditor of Missouri, gubernatorial nominee 2007 1953 Nebraska Deb Fischer Republican Nebraska Legislature 2013 1951 Nevada Catherine Cortez Masto Democratic Nevada Attorney General 2017 1964 New Hampshire Jeanne Shaheen Democratic New Hampshire Senate, Governor of New Hampshire 2009 1947 New Hampshire Maggie Hassan Democratic New Hampshire Senate, Governor of New Hampshire 2017 1958 New York Kirsten Gillibrand Democratic U.S. House of Representatives 2009 1966 North Dakota Heidi Heitkamp Democratic - NPL North Dakota Attorney General, North Dakota Tax Commissioner, gubernatorial nominee 2013 1955 Washington Patty Murray Democratic Washington Senate 1950 Washington Maria Cantwell Democratic Washington House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives 2001 1958 West Virginia Shelley Moore Capito Republican West Virginia House of Delegates, U.S. House of Representatives 2015 1953 Wisconsin Tammy Baldwin Democratic Wisconsin State Assembly, U.S. House of Representatives 2013 1962 Election, selection and family This article is part of a series on the United States Senate History of the United States Senate Members Current members ( by seniority by class ) Former members Hill committees ( DSCC NRSC ) United States Vice President ( list ) President pro tempore ( list ) Presiding officer Party leaders Party leadership of the United States Senate Democratic Caucus Republican Conference Politics and procedure Advice and consent Blue slip Closed session ( list ) Cloture Committees ( list ) Executive session Morning business Filibuster Nuclear option Recess appointment Quorum Quorum call Salaries Saxbe fix Seal Holds Senatorial courtesy Standing Rules Traditions Unanimous consent Vice Presidents ' tie - breaking votes Places United States Capitol Senate chamber Senate Reception Room Senate office buildings ( Dirksen Hart Russell ) Before 2001, numerically speaking, the most common way for a woman to ascend to the U.S. Senate was to have been appointed there following the death or resignation of a husband or father who previously held the seat. An example is Muriel Humphrey ( D - MN ), the widow of former senator and Vice President Hubert Humphrey ; she was appointed to fill his seat until a special election was held ( in which she did not run ). However, with the election of three women in 2000, the balance shifted : More women have now entered service as a senator by winning their seats outright than by being appointed to the body. Recent examples of selection include Jean Carnahan and Lisa Murkowski. In 2000, Jean Carnahan ( D - MO ) was appointed to fill the Senate seat won by her recently deceased husband, Mel Carnahan. Carnahan -- even though dead -- defeated the incumbent senator, John Ashcroft. Carnahan 's widow was named to fill his seat by Missouri Governor Roger Wilson until a special election was held. However, she lost the subsequent 2002 election to fill out the rest of the six - year term. In 2002, Lisa Murkowski ( R - AK ) was appointed by her father Alaska Governor Frank Murkowski, who had resigned from the Senate to become governor, to serve the remaining two years of his term. Lisa Murkowski defeated former governor Tony Knowles in her retention bid in 2004. Two recent members of the Senate brought with them a combination of name recognition resulting from the political careers of their famous husbands and their own substantial experience in public affairs. The first, former Senator Elizabeth Dole ( R - NC ), is married to former Senate Majority Leader and 1996 Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole and served as Secretary of Transportation under President Ronald Reagan and Secretary of Labor under President George H.W. Bush ; she later ran a losing bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2000. The other, former Senator Hillary Clinton ( D - NY ), wife of former President Bill Clinton, was First Lady of the United States and First Lady of Arkansas before taking her seat in 2000. She too ran an unsuccessful campaign for her party 's presidential nomination in 2008 ; she resigned in 2009 to become the secretary of state for the eventual victor of that election, Barack Obama. In 2016, she ran a successful campaign for her party 's presidential nomination, eventually losing in the general election to Republican nominee Donald Trump. Another famous name is Nancy Landon Kassebaum, the daughter of former Kansas governor and one - time presidential candidate Alf Landon. After retiring from the Senate, she married former Senator Howard Baker ( R - TN ). Kassebaum has the distinction of being the first female elected senator who did not succeed her husband in Congress ( Margaret Chase Smith was only elected to the Senate after succeeding her husband to his House seat ). At the time of her retirement in 1997, Kassebaum was the second longest serving female senator, after Smith ( Since 1997 five women have had Senate careers longer than Kassebaum 's ). Firsts and onlies The first woman in the Senate was Rebecca Latimer Felton, who served representing Georgia for only one day in 1922. Hattie Caraway became the first woman to win election to the Senate ( Arkansas ), in 1932. Senator Margaret Chase Smith was the first woman to serve in both the House and Senate ( she first served in the House, and began serving in the Senate in 1949 ), and she also won a 1960 race for Senate which was the nation 's first ever race pitting two women ( her and Lucia Cormier ) against each other for a Senate seat. In 1978, Nancy Kassebaum became the first woman ever elected to a full term in the Senate without her husband having previously served in Congress. Muriel Humphrey Brown was the first and only Second Lady to serve in the United States Senate. After her husband, Hubert Humphrey, was defeated in the 1968 presidential election, he ran for his old Senate seat from Minnesota. Following his unexpected death, Brown was appointed by the Governor of Minnesota in 1978 to fill her late husband 's Senate seat. She served for less than one year, and did not seek reelection. The first woman to be elected to the Senate without any family connections was Paula Hawkins, elected in 1980. In 1992, Dianne Feinstein was the first woman to defeat an incumbent senator from a different party when she defeated appointed Senator John Seymour in a special election. Feinstein entered the Senate in 1992 as the first female Jewish senator. Women were not allowed to wear pants on the Senate floor until 1993. In 1993, Senators Barbara Mikulski and Carol Moseley Braun wore pants onto the floor in defiance of the rule, and female support staff followed soon after, with the rule being amended later that year by Senate Sergeant - at - Arms Martha Pope to allow women to wear pants on the floor so long as they also wore a jacket. The first time two female U.S. Senators from the same state served concurrently was beginning in 1993 ; Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer ( both D - CA ) were both elected in 1992, with Feinstein taking office that same year ( as the result of a special election ) and Boxer taking office in 1993 until 2016 when Boxer retired and Feinstein was joined by Kamala Harris. In 1993 Carol Moseley Braun, who was African - American and had been elected the previous year, became the first woman of color in the Senate. She was also the first woman to defeat an incumbent senator, having toppled Senator Alan Dixon in the Democratic primary in 1992. Olympia Snowe arrived in the Senate in 1995, having previously served in the House of Representatives and both houses of the Maine state legislature. She and later Debbie Stabenow of Michigan are the only women to have served in both houses of a state legislature and both houses of the federal legislature. In 2000, Stabenow and Maria Cantwell became the first women to defeat incumbent elected senators in a general election, unseating Senators Spencer Abraham and Slade Gorton respectively. Hillary Clinton was the first and only First Lady to run for and win a United States Senate seat ; she joined the Senate in 2001. She is also the only female U.S. Senator ( and only woman ) to be the nominee of a major party for President of the United States, which occurred in 2016. In 2008, Kay Hagan became the first woman to unseat a female incumbent, Elizabeth Dole. Upon the opening of the 112th Congress in 2011, New Hampshire Democrat Jeanne Shaheen was joined by newly elected Republican Kelly Ayotte, making the first female tandem senators that do not belong to the same party. Mazie Hirono, who joined the Senate in 2013, was the first Asian American woman and first Buddhist person in the Senate. Tammy Baldwin, who joined the Senate in 2013, was the first and only openly gay person to serve in the United States Senate. Joni Ernst became the first female combat veteran to serve in the Senate when she joined in 2015. In 2016, Kamala Harris was the first woman to defeat another woman from the same party, U.S. Representative Loretta Sanchez, in a general election. In 2017 Tammy Duckworth became the first female double amputee in the Senate and Catherine Cortez Masto joined the Senate as its first Latina. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire hold the distinction of being the first and second women elected both Governor and U.S. Senator of a state ; both served as Governor of New Hampshire and served together in the Senate starting in 2017. Tammy Duckworth became the first woman to give birth while holding a senate seat in the United States in 2018. Duckworth gave birth to Maile Pearl on April 9th, 2018. Shortly afterward, rules were changed so that a Senator has the right to bring a child under one year old on the Senate floor and breastfeed them during votes. The day after those rules were changed, Maile became the first baby on the Senate floor when Duckworth brought her. Houses served Senator Olympia Snowe ( R - ME ) arrived in the Senate in 1995, having previously served in the House of Representatives and both houses of the Maine state legislature. She and later Debbie Stabenow of Michigan are the only women to have served in both houses of a state legislature and both houses of the federal legislature. Defeated incumbents In 1992, Carol Moseley Braun ( D - IL ) became the first woman to defeat an incumbent senator when she toppled Senator Alan Dixon in the Democratic primary. Later that year, Dianne Feinstein ( D - CA ) was the first woman to defeat an incumbent senator from a different party when she defeated appointed Senator John Seymour in a special election. Kay Bailey Hutchison ( R - TX ) duplicated Feinstein 's feat in 1993, toppling appointed Senator Bob Krueger in a special election. In 2000, Stabenow ( D - MI ) and Maria Cantwell ( D - WA ) became the first women to defeat incumbent elected senators in a general election, unseating Senators Spencer Abraham and Slade Gorton respectively. In 2008, Kay Hagan became the first woman to unseat a female incumbent, Elizabeth Dole. In 2016, Maggie Hassan repeated Hagan 's feat and unseated Kelly Ayotte. In 2016, Kamala Harris was the first woman to defeat another woman from the same party, Rep. Loretta Sanchez, in a General Election. Senators from the same state The first time two female senators from the same state served concurrently were Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer ( both D - CA ), both elected in 1992, with Feinstein taking office that same year ( as the result of a special election ) and Boxer taking office in 1993 until 2016 when Boxer retired and Feinstein was joined by Kamala Harris. For a brief time, there were two female senators from Kansas serving concurrently, when Nancy Kassebaum and Sheila Frahm briefly served together after Frahm 's appointment in 1996 ; Frahm did not win election to the seat and left office later the same year. Maine Senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins served concurrently from 1997, when Collins entered office, to 2013, when Snowe retired. Washington Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell have also served concurrently since 2001, when Cantwell entered office. Upon the opening of the 112th Congress, New Hampshire Democrat Jeanne Shaheen was joined by newly elected Republican Kelly Ayotte, making the first female tandem senators that do not belong to the same party. In 2016, Democrat Maggie Hassan defeated Kelly Ayotte to make the sixth pair of female senators with Jeanne Shaheen in two pairs. Both Hassan and Shaheen served as Governor of New Hampshire prior to their election to the Senate. Upon Tina Smith being sworn in to the Senate on January 3, 2018 following her appointment to a vacant Minnesota seat, she commenced serving alongside Amy Klobuchar as the seventh pair of female senators. List of States represented by women This map shows which states have had / has a female senator via party Democrat ( s ) Republican ( s ) Both a Democrat and a Republican Eight Democratic women senators appear at the 2008 Democratic Convention in Denver. It has become a tradition at Democratic conventions for incumbent women senators to appear on opening night. 30 states have been represented by female Senators, and 19 are currently represented. In 2009, North Carolina became the first state to have been represented by female Senators of both parties, and the first to have a female Senator succeeded by a female Senator from the other party. In 2011, New Hampshire became the second state to be represented by female Senators from both parties, and the first to have female Senators of both parties serving concurrently. State Current Previous Total Alabama 0 Alaska 0 Arizona 0 0 0 Arkansas 0 California Colorado 0 0 0 Connecticut 0 0 0 Delaware 0 0 0 Florida 0 Georgia 0 Hawaii 0 Idaho 0 0 0 Illinois Indiana 0 0 0 Iowa 0 Kansas 0 Kentucky 0 0 0 Louisiana 0 Maine Maryland 0 Massachusetts 0 Michigan 0 Minnesota Mississippi 0 Missouri Nebraska Nevada 0 New Hampshire New Jersey 0 0 0 New Mexico 0 0 0 New York North Carolina 0 North Dakota Ohio 0 0 0 Oklahoma 0 0 0 Oregon 0 Pennsylvania 0 0 0 Rhode Island 0 0 0 South Carolina 0 0 0 South Dakota 0 Tennessee 0 0 0 Texas 0 Utah 0 0 0 Vermont 0 0 0 Virginia 0 0 0 Washington 0 West Virginia 0 Wisconsin 0 Wyoming 0 0 0 List of female U.S. Senators Portrait Name ( lifespan ) State Term start Term end Length of service ( days ) Entered by Left for Party Rebecca Felton ( 1835 -- 1930 ) Georgia November 21, 1922 November 22, 1922 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Appointment Appointment ended Democratic Hattie Caraway ( 1878 -- 1950 ) Arkansas December 9, 1931 January 3, 1945 7003477400000000000 ♠ 4,774 Appointment Lost renomination Democratic Rose Long ( 1892 -- 1970 ) Louisiana January 31, 1936 January 3, 1937 7002337000000000000 ♠ 337 Appointment Appointment ended Democratic Dixie Graves ( 1882 -- 1965 ) Alabama August 20, 1937 January 10, 1938 7002143000000000000 ♠ 143 Appointment Appointment ended Democratic Gladys Pyle ( 1890 -- 1989 ) South Dakota November 9, 1938 January 3, 1939 7001550000000000000 ♠ 55 Special election Retired Republican Vera C. Bushfield ( 1889 -- 1976 ) South Dakota October 6, 1948 December 26, 1948 7001810000000000000 ♠ 81 Appointment Appointment ended Republican Margaret Chase Smith ( 1897 -- 1995 ) Maine January 3, 1949 January 3, 1973 7003876600000000000 ♠ 8,766 Election Lost reelection Republican Eva Bowring ( 1892 -- 1985 ) Nebraska April 16, 1954 November 7, 1954 7002205000000000000 ♠ 205 Appointment Appointment ended Republican Hazel Abel ( 1888 -- 1966 ) Nebraska November 8, 1954 December 31, 1954 7001530000000000000 ♠ 53 Special election Retired and resigned early Republican Maurine Neuberger ( 1907 -- 2000 ) Oregon November 9, 1960 January 3, 1967 7003224600000000000 ♠ 2,246 Special election Retired Democratic Elaine Edwards ( 1929 -- 2018 ) Louisiana August 1, 1972 November 13, 1972 7002104000000000000 ♠ 104 Appointment Appointment ended Democratic Muriel Humphrey ( 1912 -- 1998 ) Minnesota January 25, 1978 November 7, 1978 7002286000000000000 ♠ 286 Appointment Appointment ended Democratic Maryon Allen ( 1925 -- 2018 ) Alabama June 8, 1978 November 7, 1978 7002152000000000000 ♠ 152 Appointment Lost nomination to finish term Democratic Nancy Kassebaum ( born 1932 ) Kansas December 23, 1978 January 3, 1997 7003658600000000000 ♠ 6,586 Election Retired Republican Paula Hawkins ( 1927 -- 2009 ) Florida January 1, 1981 January 3, 1987 7003219300000000000 ♠ 2,193 Election Lost reelection Republican Barbara Mikulski ( born 1936 ) Maryland January 3, 1987 January 3, 2017 7004109590000000000 ♠ 10,959 Election Retired Democratic Jocelyn Burdick ( born 1922 ) North Dakota September 16, 1992 December 14, 1992 7001890000000000000 ♠ 89 Appointment Appointment ended Democratic Dianne Feinstein ( born 1933 ) California November 10, 1992 present 7003948400000000000 ♠ 9,484 Special election Incumbent Democratic Barbara Boxer ( born 1940 ) California January 3, 1993 January 3, 2017 7003876700000000000 ♠ 8,767 Election Retired Democratic Carol Moseley - Braun ( born 1947 ) Illinois January 3, 1993 January 3, 1999 7003219100000000000 ♠ 2,191 Election Lost reelection Democratic Patty Murray ( born 1950 ) Washington January 3, 1993 present 7003943000000000000 ♠ 9,430 Election Incumbent Democratic Kay Hutchison ( born 1943 ) Texas June 14, 1993 January 3, 2013 7003714300000000000 ♠ 7,143 Special election Retired Republican Olympia Snowe ( born 1947 ) Maine January 3, 1995 January 3, 2013 7003657600000000000 ♠ 6,576 Election Retired Republican Sheila Frahm ( born 1945 ) Kansas June 11, 1996 November 6, 1996 7002148000000000000 ♠ 148 Appointment Lost nomination to finish term Republican Susan Collins ( born 1952 ) Maine January 3, 1997 present 7003796900000000000 ♠ 7,969 Election Incumbent Republican Mary Landrieu ( born 1955 ) Louisiana January 3, 1997 January 3, 2015 7003657500000000000 ♠ 6,575 Election Lost reelection Democratic Blanche Lincoln ( born 1960 ) Arkansas January 3, 1999 January 3, 2011 7003438300000000000 ♠ 4,383 Election Lost reelection Democratic Maria Cantwell ( born 1958 ) Washington January 3, 2001 present 7003650800000000000 ♠ 6,508 Election Incumbent Democratic Jean Carnahan ( born 1933 ) Missouri January 3, 2001 November 25, 2002 7002691000000000000 ♠ 691 Appointment Lost election to finish term Democratic Hillary Clinton ( born 1947 ) New York January 3, 2001 January 21, 2009 7003294000000000000 ♠ 2,940 Election Resigned to become United States Secretary of State Democratic Debbie Stabenow ( born 1950 ) Michigan January 3, 2001 present 7003650800000000000 ♠ 6,508 Election Incumbent Democratic Lisa Murkowski ( born 1957 ) Alaska December 20, 2002 present 7003579200000000000 ♠ 5,792 Appointment Incumbent Republican Elizabeth Dole ( born 1936 ) North Carolina January 3, 2003 January 3, 2009 7003219200000000000 ♠ 2,192 Election Lost reelection Republican Amy Klobuchar ( born 1960 ) Minnesota January 3, 2007 present 7003431700000000000 ♠ 4,317 Election Incumbent Democratic Claire McCaskill ( born 1953 ) Missouri January 3, 2007 present 7003431700000000000 ♠ 4,317 Election Incumbent Democratic Jeanne Shaheen ( born 1947 ) New Hampshire January 3, 2009 present 7003358600000000000 ♠ 3,586 Election Incumbent Democratic Kay Hagan ( born 1953 ) North Carolina January 3, 2009 January 3, 2015 7003219100000000000 ♠ 2,191 Election Lost reelection Democratic Kirsten Gillibrand ( born 1966 ) New York January 26, 2009 present 7003356300000000000 ♠ 3,563 Appointment Incumbent Democratic Kelly Ayotte ( born 1968 ) New Hampshire January 3, 2011 January 3, 2017 7003219200000000000 ♠ 2,192 Election Lost reelection Republican Tammy Baldwin ( born 1962 ) Wisconsin January 3, 2013 present 7003212500000000000 ♠ 2,125 Election Incumbent Democratic Deb Fischer ( born 1951 ) Nebraska January 3, 2013 present 7003212500000000000 ♠ 2,125 Election Incumbent Republican Heidi Heitkamp ( born 1955 ) North Dakota January 3, 2013 present 7003212500000000000 ♠ 2,125 Election Incumbent Democratic Mazie Hirono ( born 1947 ) Hawaii January 3, 2013 present 7003212500000000000 ♠ 2,125 Election Incumbent Democratic Elizabeth Warren ( born 1949 ) Massachusetts January 3, 2013 present 7003212500000000000 ♠ 2,125 Election Incumbent Democratic Joni Ernst ( born 1970 ) Iowa January 3, 2015 present 7003139500000000000 ♠ 1,395 Election Incumbent Republican Shelley Moore Capito ( born 1953 ) West Virginia January 3, 2015 present 7003139500000000000 ♠ 1,395 Election Incumbent Republican Catherine Cortez Masto ( born 1964 ) Nevada January 3, 2017 present 7002664000000000000 ♠ 664 Election Incumbent Democratic Tammy Duckworth ( born 1968 ) Illinois January 3, 2017 present 7002664000000000000 ♠ 664 Election Incumbent Democratic Kamala Harris ( born 1964 ) California January 3, 2017 present 7002664000000000000 ♠ 664 Election Incumbent Democratic Maggie Hassan ( born 1958 ) New Hampshire January 3, 2017 present 7002664000000000000 ♠ 664 Election Incumbent Democratic Tina Smith ( born 1958 ) Minnesota January 3, 2018 present 7002299000000000000 ♠ 299 Appointment Incumbent Democratic Cindy Hyde - Smith ( born 1959 ) Mississippi April 9, 2018 present 7002203000000000000 ♠ 203 Appointment Incumbent Republican Graphs Histograph Starting Total Graph March 4, 1789 0 November 21, 1922 * November 23, 1922 0 December 9, 1931 * January 31, 1936 * * January 3, 1937 * August 20, 1937 * * January 11, 1938 * November 9, 1938 * * January 3, 1939 * January 3, 1945 0 October 6, 1948 * December 27, 1948 0 January 3, 1949 * April 16, 1954 * * January 1, 1955 * November 9, 1960 * * January 3, 1967 * August 1, 1972 * * November 14, 1972 * January 3, 1973 0 January 25, 1978 * June 8, 1978 * * November 8, 1978 0 December 23, 1978 * January 1, 1981 * * September 16, 1992 * * * November 10, 1992 * * * * December 15, 1992 * * * January 3, 1993 6 * * * * * * June 14, 1993 7 * * * * * * * January 3, 1995 8 * * * * * * * * June 11, 1996 9 * * * * * * * * * November 7, 1996 8 * * * * * * * * January 3, 1997 9 * * * * * * * * * January 3, 2001 13 * * * * * * * * * * * * * November 26, 2002 12 * * * * * * * * * * * * December 20, 2002 13 * * * * * * * * * * * * * January 3, 2003 14 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * January 3, 2007 16 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * January 3, 2009 17 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * January 22, 2009 16 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * January 26, 2009 17 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * January 3, 2013 20 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * January 3, 2017 21 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * January 3, 2018 22 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * April 9, 2018 23 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Time series Pregnancies Only one female member of the Senate has been pregnant during her tenure : Senator Tammy Duckworth, who gave birth on April 9, 2018. See also Women in the United States House of Representatives Widow 's succession Notes Jump up ^ Abel resigned 3 days before the end of her term, a common practice to give her successor seniority advantage. ^ Jump up to : Predecessor resigned early to give successor seniority advantage, so the senator was appointed for the few days prior to the commencement of the elected term ^ Jump up to : When Kay Hagan defeated Elizabeth Dole, it was the first time in history a woman candidate defeated an incumbent woman. References This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( September 2010 ) Jump up ^ `` Women in the U.S. Senate 1922 -- 2015 '' ( PDF ). Center for American Women and Politics. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on 2015 - 07 - 03. Jump up ^ Of the female Senators who preceded Kassebaum : Rebecca Latimer Felton, Rose McConnell Long, Dixie Bibb Graves, Vera C. Bushfield, Eva Bowring, Elaine S. Edwards, Muriel Humphrey, and Maryon Pittman Allen were all appointed and were never elected ; Gladys Pyle ( R - SD ) and Hazel Abel ( R - NE ), were elected, but not to full terms ( i.e., to complete terms where the previous senator had died or resigned, not to new six - year terms ) ; Hattie Caraway and Maurine Brown Neuberger were both elected to full six - year terms, but their husbands had held the seat previously. Margaret Chase Smith 's ( R - ME ) husband never served in the Senate, but he did serve in the House. When he died, Margaret won the ensuing election. Of the appointed senators, Long, Bushfield, Humphrey, and Allen were all appointed to fill out part of the terms of their deceased husbands, while Graves and Edwards were appointed by their husbands, the Governor of their states at the time. However, Kassebaum 's father means that the first woman to be elected without any family connections was Paula Hawkins, elected in 1980. Jump up ^ `` U.S. Senate : Art & History Home > Historical Minutes > 1964 -- Present > `` Year of the Woman '' ``. ^ Jump up to : `` Jewesses in politics represent ! Jewish Women 's Archive ''. Jwa.org. 2002 - 11 - 05. Retrieved 2018 - 04 - 27. ^ Jump up to : `` Dianne Feinstein Congress.gov Library of Congress ''. Congress.gov. Retrieved 2018 - 04 - 27. ^ Jump up to : `` Barbara Boxer Congress.gov Library of Congress ''. Congress.gov. Retrieved 2018 - 04 - 27. Jump up ^ Plaskow, Judith ( 8 July 2008 ). `` Embodiment, Elimination, and the Role of Toilets in Struggles for Social Justice ''. Cross Currents. 58 ( 1 ) : 51 -- 64. doi : 10.1111 / j. 1939 - 3881.2008. 00004. x. ^ Jump up to : Robin Givhan ( January 21, 2004 ). `` Moseley Braun : Lady in red ''. Articles.chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2014 - 07 - 30. ^ Jump up to : Cooper, Kent ( 2005 - 06 - 09 ). `` The Long and Short of Capitol Style : Roll Call Special Features 50th Anniversary ''. Rollcall.com. Retrieved 2014 - 07 - 30. Jump up ^ `` U.S. Senate : Senators, 1789 to present ''. www.senate.gov. Retrieved 2018 - 04 - 08. ^ Jump up to : `` Tammy Duckworth Becomes First U.S. Senator To Give Birth While In Office ''. NPR.org. Retrieved 2018 - 04 - 09. ^ Jump up to : CNN, Sunlen Serfaty,. `` Babies now allowed on Senate floor after rule change ''. ^ Jump up to : `` A duckling onesie and a blazer : The Senate floor sees its first baby, but many traditions stand ''. The Washington Post. Retrieved 2018 - 04 - 20. Jump up ^ Of the female Senators who preceded Kassebaum : Rebecca Latimer Felton, Rose McConnell Long ( D - LA ), Dixie Bibb Graves ( D - AL ), Vera C. Bushfield ( R - SD ), Eva Bowring ( R - NE ), Elaine S. Edwards ( D - LA ), Muriel Humphrey, and Maryon Pittman Allen were all appointed and were never elected ; Gladys Pyle ( R - SD ) and Hazel Abel ( R - NE ), were elected, but not to full terms ( i.e., to complete terms where the previous senator had died or resigned, not to new six - year terms ) ; Hattie Caraway ( D - AR ) and Maurine Brown Neuberger ( D - OR ) were both elected to full six - year terms, but their husbands had held the seat previously. Margaret Chase Smith 's ( R - ME ) husband never served in the Senate, but he did serve in the House. When he died, Margaret won the ensuing election. Of the appointed senators, Long, Bushfield, Humphrey, and Allen were all appointed to fill out part of the terms of their deceased husbands, while Graves and Edwards were appointed by their husbands, the Governor of their states at the time. Jump up ^ CNN, By Emanuella Grinberg,. `` Wisconsin 's Tammy Baldwin is first openly gay person elected to Senate - CNNPolitics ''. CNN. Retrieved 2018 - 04 - 08. External links U.S. Senate History : Women in the Senate `` Women in the U.S. Senate 1922 -- 2010 '' Center for American Women and Politics, Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Steinhauer, Jennifer ( March 21, 2013 ). `` Once Few, Women Hold More Power in Senate ''. The New York Times. Retrieved March 23, 2013. Maurer, Elizabeth. `` Legislating History : 100 Years of Women in Congress ''. National Women 's History Museum. 2017. 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Question: who was the first woman elected to the us senate
Answer: Hattie Caraway