In november 2018, the largest number of women ever was elected to the 116th congress, resulting in a grand total of 87 in the house and 23 in the senate.Ushered in on a groundswell of grassroots support, diverse in background, age, professional experience, and ideology, the new freshmen immediately began making history
And noise.These include alexandria ocasio-cortez, the youngest woman to be elected to the house sharice davids and deb haaland, the first native american women in congress rashida tlaib and ilhan omar, the first muslim women representatives and abigail spanberg, a former cia agent.The firsts will tell their stories
Their triumphs and obstacles, alliances and controversies
As they arrive in washington, d.C., Ready to carry their historic legacy into institutional change. Veteran hill reporter jennifer steinhauer will follow these women's attempts to transcend the partisan rancor and dysfunction of congress from their positions as upstarts and backbenchers in a democratic caucus directed by leaders old enough to be their grandparents.Moving on from their trailblazing campaigns to the daily work of governance, these women will confront whether a gender and generational shift in the house can overcome institutional inertia.Will they work with their party's leadership, or will they work to overthrow it will their protests of the power structure fizzle, or will they create a lasting legislative framework for their ideas how will they get on with their older pe...