LEGISLATORS: Recognizes the women of the Legislature of Louisiana on the occasion of Women's History Month

ENROLLED
2026 Regular Session
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 40
BY REPRESENTATIVE TAYLOR
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
To commend the women of the Legislature of Louisiana on the occasion of Women's
History Month.
WHEREAS, it is most fitting to recognize the women of the Legislature of Louisiana
for their significant contributions to the state and its citizens and to commend them on the
occasion of Women's History Month; and
WHEREAS, the Legislature of Louisiana has seen one hundred seven distinguished
women serve as members of the House and Senate since 1936; and
WHEREAS, Doris Lindsey Holland Rhodes became the first woman to serve in the
state legislature when she was elected to fill her late husband's seat in the Senate in 1936;
in 1940, she and Beatrice Hawthorne Moore became the first women to serve in the House
of Representatives; and
WHEREAS, Dorothy Mae Taylor served as a member of the House of
Representatives from 1971 to 1976, and she was the first Black woman elected to the state
legislature; and
WHEREAS, Diana E. Bajoie was the second Black woman and first single woman
elected to the legislature; she served the House from 1976 to 1991 and the Senate from 1991
to 2008, and she was the first female president pro tempore in Senate history; and
WHEREAS, Louise Brazzel Johnson served the House from 1972 to 1976 and was
the first woman to serve on the House Committee on Appropriations under the ballot system;
and
WHEREAS, Mary L. Landrieu served the House from 1980 to 1988 and was later
elected to the United States Senate; and
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HCR NO. 40 ENROLLED
WHEREAS, Kathleen Babineaux Blanco was a member of the House from 1984 to
1988 and served as the 54th governor of Louisiana from 2004 to 2008, during which she
helped guide the state through the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina; and
WHEREAS, Jalila Jefferson-Bullock served the House from 2004 to 2008 and was
the first representative to give birth during session; and
WHEREAS, Sharon Weston Broome served the House from 1992 to 2004 and
became the first woman speaker pro tempore; she served the Senate from 2005 to 2016 and
was the president pro tempore from 2008 to 2016; she later served as the mayor-president
of Baton Rouge from 2017 to 2025; and
WHEREAS, thirty-four Louisiana women currently serve in the Legislature of
Louisiana and make up the Louisiana Legislative Women's Caucus; of those women, twenty-
nine serve as representatives and five serve as senators; Senator Beth Mizell chairs the
caucus and Representative Kellee Hennessy Dickerson and Senator Katrina Jackson-
Andrews serve as vice chairs; and
WHEREAS, past and present women of the Legislature of Louisiana have been
powerful voices for women throughout the state, and they are most deserving of the highest
recognition for their historic roles as trailblazers and community leaders.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
commend the women of the Legislature of Louisiana on the occasion of Women's History
Month and does hereby express enduring appreciation to women legislators for their
immeasurable contributions to the state and its citizens.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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