Tammy Duckworth

A hero and a proven leader

United States Sen. Tammy Duckworth is a Veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, a former assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and a former head of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs. She served in the Reserve Forces for 23 years before retiring at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. In Iraq, Sen. Duckworth was flying a mission north of Baghdad in November of 2004 when her helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade. Her crew landed the aircraft, but she lost both of her legs and shattered her right arm in the blast. She received the Purple Heart for her injuries. During her recovery and beyond, Sen. Duckworth has remained committed to public service, advocating for Veterans and disability rights and fighting for Illinois’ working families. Fluent in Thai and Indonesian, Sen. Duckworth holds a master’s degree in international affairs and a Ph.D. in human services. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2012, where she served on the Armed Services and Oversight and Government Reform Committees, and went on to be elected to the U.S. Senate in 2016, flipping a seat from red to blue. In 2018, after she became the first senator to give birth while serving in office, she sent a message to working families across the country about the value of family-friendly policies by securing a historic rules change that allows senators to bring their infant children onto the Senate floor. Sen. Duckworth lives with her husband Bryan, their daughters Abigail and Maile and her mother, Lamai.

A champion for Illinois working families

Sen. Duckworth is focused on expanding economic opportunity for all of Illinois’s working families. She advocates for practical, commonsense solutions needed to move Illinois and our country forward like rebuilding our infrastructure, growing manufacturing jobs while supporting minority-owned small businesses, investing in communities that have been ignored for too long, and making college more affordable for all Americans. She co-founded the Senate’s first-ever Environmental Justice Caucus and also continues her lifelong mission of supporting, protecting, and keeping the promises we’ve made to our servicemembers, military families and Veterans. In her next term, she will continue her life’s work of serving our country and defending our American values.

Victory in a must-win reelection fight

Sen. Duckworth’s lived experience and her commitment to championing the rights of women and families make her an indispensable leader. “I view my time now as a bonus, and that has allowed me to speak up without fear,” she has said. We showed this pro-choice champion the full support of the EMILY’s List community as she successfully defended this critical seat in 2022.