- The most diverse Congress in US history was sworn in on January 3, 2019.
- New Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi led the swear-in ceremony for House members. Vice President Mike Pence led the ceremony at the Senate.
- More than 100 women were sworn in as members of Congress today, a historic record.
Nancy Pelosi was handed back the gavel by House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy.
Foto: House Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is handed the gavel by House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) after being elected as House Speaker as the U.S. House of Representatives meets for the start of the 116th Congress inside the House Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019.sourceREUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
She then administered the oath to the members of the 116th Congress.
Foto: U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) swears in members of the 116th Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019.sourceREUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Pelosi received 220 votes and reassumed her role as Speaker.
Foto: House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) raises the gavel after being elected as Speaker of the House during the start of the 116th Congress in the Capitol in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019.sourceREUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Pelosi’s granddaughter was quite excited to see her grandma become speaker.
Foto: House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is kissed by her grand daughter after she was elected House Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives at the start of the 116th Congress inside the House Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019.sourceREUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Pelosi is the only woman to ever serve as Speaker of the House.
Foto: The sign at the office suite of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., is installed on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019, during the opening session of the 116th Congress.sourceAP Photo/Cliff Owen
This is the most diverse Congress ever in US history.
Foto: U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster (D-NH) poses with Representative-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA), Representative-elect Jahana Hayes (D-CT), Representative-elect Lauren Underwood (D-IL) and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) (L-R) as the U.S. House of Representatives meets for the start of the 116th Congress inside the House Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019.sourceREUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
New York’s Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest congresswoman ever.
Foto: U.S. Representative-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) reacts inside the House Chamber as the U.S. House of Representatives meets for the start of the 116th Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019.sourceREUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Ocasio-Cortez wore a white pantsuit, which many have taken as a nod to the suffragette movement.
Foto: Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a freshman Democrat representing New York’s 14th Congressional District, takes a selfie with Rep. Ann McLane Kuster, D-NH, and Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., on the first day of the 116th Congress with Democrats holding the majority, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019.sourceAP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
Rashida Tlaib, the first Palestinian-American elected to the House, wore a Palestinian thobe to the ceremony.
Foto: Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), the first Palestinian-American elected to the House, gestures with a young supporter while wearing a traditional Palestinian thobe at the Longworth House Office Building (LHOB), in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 3, 2019 in this image obtained from social media.sourceAdam Shapiro via REUTERS
Tlaib, from Michigan, is one of the first two Muslim women to serve in Congress. Arab-American activists and 100 kids from Detroit came to Washington to support her.
Foto: Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), the first Palestinian-American elected to the House, poses with supporters outside her office at the Longworth House Office Building (LHOB), in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 3, 2019 in this image obtained from social media.sourceAdam Shapiro via REUTERS
Like Ocasio-Cortez, Representative Ilhan Omar, one of the first two Muslim women in Congress, wore white.
Foto: U.S. Representative-elect Ilhan Omar (D-MI) arrives inside the House Chamber as the U.S. House of Representatives meets for the start of the 116th Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019.sourceREUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Deb Haaland, one of the first Native American women elected to Congress, wore traditional Pueblo clothing.
Foto: Rep. Deb Haaland (D-NM) waits before the start of the 116th Congress and swearing-in ceremony on the floor of the US House of Representatives at the US Capitol on January 3, 2019 in Washington,DC.sourcePhoto by Brendan Smialowski / AFP
Online, many of the new and returning women of the House celebrated what California Representative Barbara Lee called the “first day of a new era.”
Foto: WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 03: Children pose with member-elect Rep. Deb Haaland (D-NM) (L), Rep. Sharice Davids (D-KS), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) (R) during the first session of the 116th Congress at the U.S. Capitol January 03, 2019 in Washington, DC. Under the cloud of a partial federal government shutdown, Speaker designate Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) will reclaim her former title as speaker and her fellow Democrats will take control of the House of Representatives for the second time in eight years.sourcePhoto by Win McNamee/Getty Images
The swearing-in ceremony happened on the 13th day of the third government shutdown of the Trump administration. Pelosi has said Democrats will re-open the government now that they have control of the House.
Foto: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) administers the oath of office to House members and delegates of the U.S. House of Representatives at the start of the 116th Congress inside the House Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019.sourceREUTERS/Kevin Lamarque