On September 13, 1948, history was made when Sen. Margaret Chase Smith, a Republican from Maine, was elected to the Senate, becoming the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress. Born Margaret Madeline Chase on December 14, 1897, in Skowhegan, a town in central Maine, Smith was the oldest of six children in her family. She attended Skowhegan High School and worked various jobs before marrying Clyde H. Smith in 1930.
Clyde Smith served as a U.S. Representative, but in 1940, he was diagnosed with a heart condition. Knowing he would not survive an election campaign, he convinced his wife to run for his seat in the general election the following November. Margaret Chase Smith won the special Republican primary election after her husband’s death and went on to win the special election in June 1940. She was then sworn in and later reelected to the House of Representatives in 1942, 1944, and 1946.
Known for her willingness to vote across party lines, Smith’s career took another turn when Senate Majority Leader Wallace Humphrey White Jr., a Republican from Maine, announced his retirement in 1947. Despite opposition from the state party, Smith won the Republican Senate primary by a landslide. In the general election on September 13, 1948, she received 71% of the vote and became the first woman elected to the Senate without being a widow or a replacement for a deceased senator. Smith served three more terms in the Senate before being defeated in the 1972 general election.
During her time in the Senate, Smith gained national attention for her opposition to McCarthyism. In a speech titled “Declaration of Conscience,” she expressed concerns about the abuse of freedom of speech in America and the fear of being labeled as a communist or fascist for speaking one’s mind. Despite her opposition to McCarthyism, Smith was considered as a potential running mate for Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952. She later ran for president herself in 1964, becoming the first woman to have her name put forward for the presidential nomination of a major political party.
Smith’s presidential campaign did not result in winning any primaries, but she made history by being the first woman to have her name placed in nomination for a major political party’s presidential nominee at the 1964 Republican National Convention. She continued to be an influential figure in the Senate until her retirement and remains the longest-serving female senator, a title she held until 2011 when Sen. Barbara Mikulski took office.
On May 29, 1995, at the age of 97, Margaret Chase Smith passed away in her hometown of Skowhegan, leaving behind a legacy of breaking barriers and fighting for freedom of speech. Her impact on American politics and her groundbreaking achievements continue to inspire generations of women in politics.
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