Catherine Cortez Masto

The 2016 United States presidential election held the possibility of history being made. We of course know that Hillary Clinton was unsuccessful in her attempt to win the race to the White House. History was, however, made in Las Vegas. On that Tuesday night, Catherine Cortez Masto became the first Latina elected to represent Nevada in the U.S. Senate.

She worked as an attorney in Las Vegas and went on to become the Attorney General of Nevada. During her tenure she worked to pass new laws targeting the methamphetamine industry. The laws targeted the manufacturers of the drug and the materials they use. She passed laws that helped women and children who were victims of the sex trafficking industry. She also strengthened laws surrounding the registration of sex offenders.

During the Senate race Catherine targeted the Latino community in Nevada. She herself is the granddaughter of a Mexican immigrant and so a large part of her campaign focused on the issue of immigration. In the election she won 47% of the vote versus the 45% of her opponent Joe Heck.

Now that she is a Senator in Washington D.C. she has vowed to work on her campaign promises. These include equal pay, increasing the minimum wage, and fighting for women’s rights. She feels particularly protective of¬†a woman’s right to choose. She said recently, “I really don‚Äôt believe people in Washington should be dictating to women what they should or shouldn‚Äôt or can or cannot do with their bodies. It‚Äôs ridiculous to me in this day and age, that a woman still has to fight”.

-Michelle O’Brien
Junior Girl
Girl Museum Inc.

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