A number of female United States Senators are members of National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) and National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) women’s fraternities/sororities. I suspect there are a greater number of sorority women who are or have been state senators. This is the list of women who have served in Washington, D.C. and not in the state capitals.
Alpha Gamma Delta
Kelly Loeffler, Georgia (R), 12/2019-12/2020
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
Kamala Harris, California (D), 1/3/2017-1/2021, when she became the first woman and sorority woman to serve as Vice President of the United States
Chi Omega
Blanche Lincoln, Arkansas (D), 1/3/1999-1/3/2011
Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee (R), 1/3/2019-present
Katie Britt, Alabama (R), 1/3/2023-present
Delta Delta Delta
Elizabeth Dole, North Carolina (R), 1/3/2003-1/3/2009
Delta Gamma
Mary Landrieu, Louisiana (D), 1/3/1997-1/15/2015
Kelly Ayotte, New Hampshire (R), 1/3/2011-2017
Delta Phi Epsilon
Barbara Boxer, California (D) 1/3/1993-2017
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Carol Moseley Braun, Illinois (D), 1/3/1993-1/3/1999
Delta Zeta
Maurine Brown Neuberger, Oregon (D), 11/9/1960-1/3/1967
Gamma Phi Beta
Jocelyn Birch Burdick, North Dakota (D), 9/16/1992-12/14/1992
Deb Fischer, Nebraska (R), 1/3/2013-present (She’s a P.E.O., too)
Kappa Alpha Theta
Nancy Landon Kassebaum, Kansas (R), 12/23/1978-1/3/1997
Claire McCaskill, Missouri (D), 1/3/2007-1/3/2019
Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts (D), 1/2013-present*
Kappa Delta
Jean Carnahan, Missouri (D), 1/3/2001-11/25/2002 (She’s a P.E.O., too)
Kappa Kappa Gamma
Kirsten Gillibrand, New York (D) 1/26/2009-present
Shelley Moore Capito, West Virginia (R) 1/3/2015-present
Pi Beta Phi
Kay Bailey Hutchinson, Texas (R), 6/14/1993-2013
Lisa Murkowski, Alaska (R), 12/20/2002-present
Sigma Kappa
Margaret Chase Smith, Maine (R), 1/3/1949-1/3/1973
The unaffiliated women, as far as I can tell, in order of when they first served.
I could find no sorority membership information on the following senators. I’ve included their educational institutions, in case someone has additional informatiion.
Rebecca Latimer Felton, Georgia (D), 11/21/1922-11/22/1922, Methodist Female College
Hattie Wyatt Caraway, Arkansas (D), 12/9/1931 – 1/3/1945, Dickson Normal College
Rose McConnell Long, Louisiana (D), 1/31/1936-1/2/1937
Dixie Bibb Grave, Alabama (D), 8/20/1937-1/10/1938
Gladys Pyle, South Dakota (R), 11/9/1938-1/3/1939, Huron College
Vera Cahalan Bushfield, South Dakota (R), 10/6/1948-12/26/1948. Stout Institute, University of Minnesota, Dakota Wesleyan College
Eva Kelly Bowring, Nebraska (R), 4/16/1954-11/7/1954
Hazel Hempel Abel, Nebraska (R), 11/8/1954-12/31/1954
Elaine Schwartzenburg Edwards, Louisiana (D), 8/1/1972-11/13/1972
Muriel Buck Humphrey Brown, Minnesota (D), 1/25/1978-11/7/1978, Huron College
Maryon Pittman Allen, Alabama (D), 6/8/1978-11/7/1978, University of Alabama
Paula Hawkins, Florida (R), 1/1/1981-1/3/1987, Utah State University
Barbara Mikulski, Maryland (D), 1/3/1987-2017, St. Agnes College
Dianne Feinstein, California (D), 11/10/1992-present, Stanford University (when no sororities were there)
Patty Murray, Washington (D), 1/3/1993-present
Olympia Snowe, Maine (R), 1/3/1995-2013, University of Maine
Sheila Frahm, Kansas (R), 6/11/1996-11/6/1996, Fort Hays State University, University of Texas
Susan Collins, Maine (R), 1/3/1997-present, St. Lawrence University (Phi Beta Kappa)
Maria Cantwell, Washington (D), 1/3/2001-present, Miami University
Hillary Rodham Clinton, New York (D), 1/3/2001-1/2/2009, Wellesley College
Debbie Stabenow, Michigan (D), 1/3/2001-present, Michigan State University
Amy Klobuchar, Minnesota (D), 1/3/2007-present, Yale University (when no sororities were there)
Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire (D), 1/3/2009-present, Shippensburg University
Kay Hagan, North Carolina (D), 1/3/2009-2015, Florida State University (although she may appear on several lists, my sources tell me she is no longer a member)
Tammy Baldwin, Wisconsin (D), 1/3/2013-present
Heidi Heitkamp, North Dakota (D), 1/3/2013-2019
Mazie Hirono, Hawaii (D), University of Hawaii at Manoa (Phi Beta Kappa), 1/3/2013-present
Joni Ernst, Iowa (R), Iowa State University, 1/3/2015 -present (She’s a P.E.O.)
Maggie Hassan, New Hampshire (D), Brown University, 1/2017-present
Tammy Duckworth, Illinois (D), University of Hawaii, 1/3/2017-present
Catherine Cortez-Masto, Nevada (D), University of Nevada-Reno, 1/3/2017-present
Tina Smith, Minnesota (D), 2018-present
Cindy Hyde-Smith, Mississippi (R), 2018-present
Martha McSally, Arizona (R), 1/3/2019-2020
Jacky Rosen, Nevada (D), 1/3/2019-present
Krysten Sinema, Arizona (D), 1/3/2019-present
Cynthia Lummis,Wyoming (R), 1/3/2021-present
*This just became known in summer 2017 by way of this photo:
Notice the GWU banner with the Kappa Alpha Theta “kite” next to it. Although she had been marked as “lost” in the KAT database, she has now been found.
© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com. 2017. All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/
