Who was the first female senator?
Rebecca Felton, at the age of 87… On October 3, 1922, Georgia’s Democratic Governor Thomas Hardwick made history by appointing the first woman to a Senate vacancy. He believed this act would appeal to the women of Georgia, newly enfranchised by the Constitution’s Nineteenth Amendment–which he had earlier opposed. Taking no chances of creating a potential rival for the seat in the upcoming general election, he chose eighty-seven-year-old Rebecca Felton. At the time, the Senate was out of session and not expected to convene until after the election, when the appointed senator would have to defer to her elected replacement. Thus there was little chance that Felton would actually become a senator by taking the required oath in open session. Hardwick’s plans failed, however, and he lost the election to Democrat Walter George. When the Senate convened in late November 1922, George astutely stepped aside for one day so that Felton could claim the honor of being the first female senator–if
