On June 1, Rep. Stephanie Herseth (D-SD) won a special election to fill the seat of former Rep. Bill Janklow (R-SD), who resigned earlier this year. She was sworn in on June 3 to fill the remainder of Rep. Janklow’s term, but she will have to defend her seat in the general election in November.
With her election, the total number of House women serving in the 108th Congress increases to an all-time high of 63. Of that number, three women serve as Delegates, and there are 21 Republicans and 42 Democrats. Fourteen women serve in the Senate.
Rep. Herseth is the first woman from South Dakota to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Prior to her election, she most recently served as executive director of the South Dakota Farmers Union Foundation. Rep. Herseth also has taught law at Georgetown University, worked on telecommunications issues for the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, worked with the Legal Counsel for the Elderly, and clerked for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
