Barbara Mikulski
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Barbara Ann Mikulski (born July 20, 1936), a member of the Democratic Party, is the current Class 3 United States Senator representing the State of Maryland. She has served as senator since 1987, and is currently the most senior female U.S. Senator.
Early life and activism
Born as the great-granddaughter of Polish immigrants who owned a local bakery, Barbara is the oldest of three daughters of Christine and William Mikulski. She was born and raised in historic and ethnically diverse East Baltimore, Maryland. During her high school years, she worked in her parents' grocery store, delivering groceries to seniors in her neighborhood who were unable to leave their homes.After graduating from Mount Saint Agnes College (now a part of the Loyola College in Maryland), she obtained her MSW in social work from the University of Maryland, College Park. Mikulski went to work on the front lines in President John F. Kennedy’s war against poverty. She worked as a social worker for Catholic charities and Baltimore's Department of Social Services, helping at-risk children and educating seniors about the Medicare program. Mikulkski became an activist social worker when she heard about plans to build a 16 lane highway through Baltimore's Fells Point neighborhood. She helped organize communities on both sides of the city and stopped the construction of the road, saving Fells Point and Baltimore's Inner Harbor.
Mikulski gained a positive reputation following her activism. [[Citing sources citation needed]] This led to a seat on the Baltimore City Council in 1971.
Congressional career
In 1974 she ran for the U.S. Senate for the first time, but was defeated by the Republican incumbent, Charles Mathias, Jr. In 1976, she ran for the House of Representatives representing the third district of Maryland, winning 76% of the vote.
In 1986 Mikulski announced her retirement from politics. However, in the same year she ran for the Senate seat vacated by retiring Senator Charles Mathias. Then-Gov. Harry Hughes had been expected to run for the seat, but in the aftermath of the Maryland Savings and Loan crisis, he lost his popularity with voters, opening the door for Mikulski's bid for the Senate. During the campaign, her opponent, Linda Chavez, made Mikulski's sexual orientation and her relationship with one of her staffers a central issue of the campaign. Mikulski never directly responded to the issue, and has made attempts to insinuate that she is heterosexual. [[Citing sources citation needed]] Those attempts only fueled more speculations about her sexual orientation [link]. Mikulski eventually won the race with 61% of the vote.
Since first getting elected to the Senate, she was re-elected with large majorities in 1992, 1998 and 2004. She is the dean of the women senators.
Committee assignments
As of June 2006, Mikulski serves on the following Senate committees:
- Member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
- *Ranking Member of the Retirement Security and Aging Subcommittee.
- Member of the Appropriations Committee.
- *Ranking Member of the Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittee.
- *Member of the Defense Subcommittee.
- *Member of the State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Subcommittee.
- *Member of the Transportation, Treasury, the Judiciary, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.
- *Member of the Homeland Security Subcommittee.
- Member of the Select Committee On Intelligence.
Senate action
Senator Mikulski has taken a strong stance against predatory lending, even going so far as to take personal action against Fairbanks Capital, which is claimed to have illegally foreclosed on over 100 homes in Maryland. [[Citing sources citation needed]]
Election history
!bgcolor=#cccccc |Year !bgcolor=#cccccc |Office !bgcolor=#cccccc |Election ! !bgcolor=#cccccc |Subject !bgcolor=#cccccc |Party !bgcolor=#cccccc |Votes !bgcolor=#cccccc |% ! !bgcolor=#cccccc |Opponent !bgcolor=#cccccc |Party !bgcolor=#cccccc |Votes !bgcolor=#cccccc |% |- |1976 |Congress, MD 3rd district |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |143,461 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |74.59% | |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Samuel Culotta |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |36,447 |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |25.41% |- |1978 |Congress, MD 3rd district |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |91,189 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |100% | |colspan=4|Unopposed |- |1980 |Congress, MD 3rd district |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |134,367 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |76.13% | |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Russell Schaffer |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |32,074 |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |23.87% |- |1982 |Congress, MD 3rd district |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |110,042 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |74.2% | |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Robert Scherr |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |38,259 |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |25.8% |- |1984 |Congress, MD 3rd district |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |133,189 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |68.21% | |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Ross Pierpont |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |59,493 |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |30.47% |- |1986 |MD Senator, Class 3 |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |675,225 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |60.69% | |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Linda Chavez |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |437,411 |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |39.31% |- |1992 |MD Senator, Class 3 |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |1,307,610 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |71% | |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Alan Keyes |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |533,688 |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |28.98% |- |1998 |MD Senator, Class 3 |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |1,062,810 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |70.5% | |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Ross Pierpont |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |444,637 |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |29.5% |- |2004 |MD Senator, Class 3 |General || |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Barbara Mikulski |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |1,504,691 |bgcolor=#DDEEFF |64.77% | |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |E.J. Pipkin |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |783,055 |bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |33.71%
References
External links
- [Official Website for Senator Barbara Mikulski.]
- [Barbara Mikulski on the issues]
- [record maintained by the Washington Post]
|- style="text-align: center;"
| Maryland Congressional Delegation currently serving in the United States Congress | |
|---|---|
| Senators : | Paul Sarbanes (D), Barbara Mikulski (D) |
| Representative(s) : | Wayne Gilchrest (R), Dutch Ruppersberger (D), Ben Cardin (D), Albert Wynn (D), Steny Hoyer (D), Roscoe Bartlett (R), Elijah Cummings (D), Chris Van Hollen (D) |
|
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