Hattie Caraway
| Hattie Wyatt Caraway | |
|---|---|
| Former U.S. Senator from Arkansas From: December 9, 1931 – January 3, 1945 | |
| Predecessor | Thaddeus H. Caraway |
| Successor | J. William Fulbright |
| Information | |
| Party | Democrat |
| Spouse(s) | Thaddeus H. Caraway (died 1931) |
Hattie Ophelia Wyatt Caraway (February 1, 1878 – December 21, 1950) was a liberal New Dealer and supporter of Huey Long[1] from Arkansas who served as the state's U.S. senator from the early 1930s to the mid-1940s. She succeeded her husband Thaddeus Caraway, who died in office in November 1931.
U.S. Senate
On November 6, 1931, incumbent Sen. Thaddeus Horatius Caraway died at the age of sixty due to a blood clot. Gov. Harvey Parnell appointed his widow Hattie to the seat,[2] and she won a special election the following year to serve out the remainder of her husband's term.[3] She also successfully ran for a full term in the regular general election that year,[4] with Louisiana senator Huey Long campaigning for her.
A liberal and traditional Wilsonian internationalist who firmly backed President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Caraway supported most New Deal programs and labor unions. She also strongly supported the Equal Rights Amendment, which she co-sponsored in 1943.[5] In 1938, Caraway faced a strong primary challenge by the more conservative John McClellan, and only won by four percentage points.[6]
Caraway opposed anti-lynching legislation[7] and anti-poll tax measures.
See also
References
- ↑ The True Senate Female Firsts: Hattie Caraway, Margaret Chase Smith, and Maurine Neuberger. Mad Politics: The Bizarre, Fascinating, and Unknown of American Political History. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ↑ Hattie Wyatt Caraway. encyclopedia.com. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ↑ AR US Senate Race - Jan 12, 1932. Our Campaigns. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ↑ AR US Senate Race - Nov 08, 1932. Our Campaigns. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ↑ Lewis, Jone Johnson (October 13, 2017). Hattie Caraway: First Woman Elected to the US Senate. ThoughtCo. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ↑ AR US Senate Race - D Primary Race - Aug 09, 1938. Our Campaigns. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ↑ Hendricks, Nancy (January 2, 2020). Hattie Caraway, the First Woman Elected to the U.S. Senate, Faced a Familiar Struggle With Gender Politics. Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
