This week, President Biden signed my first stand-alone bill into law. While I have been able to include multiple pieces of legislation into other, larger bills, it was very exciting to have this bill, a bill to rename a federal building in Cheyenne in honor of women’s rights pioneer Louisa Swain, signed into law this week.
As many proud Wyoming citizens know, on September 6, 1870 in Laramie, Louisa Swain became the first woman in the world to cast a ballot under democratically enacted laws granting women equal political rights. This was a full 50 years before women’s voting rights were continuously recognized in the rest of the country.
After casting her historic vote in Wyoming, she moved to Maryland where she resided until her death in 1878. She is buried in Baltimore, Maryland.
I’m grateful to Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), John Barrasso (R-WY) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) for partnering with me on this legislation to honor this important legacy. As the first woman to serve as a United States Senator from Wyoming, it is a privilege to honor the many Wyoming woman who have made us the ‘Equality State.’