American politician and military officer (born 1968)
Tammy Duckworth
Official portrait, 2017
United States Senator from Illinois
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2017
Serving with Dick Durbin
Preceded by
Mark Kirk
Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office January 21, 2021
Serving with Ken Martin, Gretchen Whitmer and Henry R. Muñoz III
Chair
Jaime Harrison
Preceded by
Grace Meng
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 8th district
In office January 3, 2013 – January 3, 2017
Preceded by
Joe Walsh
Succeeded by
Raja Krishnamoorthi
Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs
In office April 24, 2009 – June 30, 2011
President
Barack Obama
Preceded by
Lisette M. Mondello
Succeeded by
Michael Galloucis
Director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs
In office November 21, 2006 – February 8, 2009
Governor
Rod Blagojevich Pat Quinn
Preceded by
Roy Dolgos
Succeeded by
Daniel Grant
Personal details
Born
Ladda Tammy Duckworth
(1968-03-12) March 12, 1968 (age 56) Bangkok, Thailand
Political party
Democratic
Spouse
Bryan Bowlsbey
(m. 1993)
Children
2
Education
University of Hawaii at Manoa (BA) George Washington University (MIA) Northern Illinois University (attended) Capella University (PhD)
Signature
Website
Senate website
Military service
Allegiance
United States
Branch/service
United States Army
Years of service
1992–2014
Rank
Lieutenant Colonel
Unit
Illinois Army National Guard 106th Aviation Regiment, 28th Infantry Division
Battles/wars
Iraq War (WIA)
Awards
Purple Heart Meritorious Service Medal Air Medal Army Commendation Medal Combat Action Badge Senior Army Aviator Badge Dame Grand Cross (First Class) of the Order of the Crown of Thailand[1]
Tammy Duckworth's voice
Tammy Duckworth speaks on food insecurity among military families Recorded September 14, 2022
Ladda Tammy Duckworth[2] (born March 12, 1968) is an American politician and retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel serving as the junior United States senator from Illinois since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she represented Illinois's 8th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2013 to 2017.
Born in Bangkok, Thailand and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, Duckworth was educated at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and George Washington University in Washington, D.C. A combat veteran of the Iraq War, she served as a U.S. Army helicopter pilot. In 2004, when her Black Hawk helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Iraqi insurgents, she lost both legs and some mobility in her right arm. She was the first female double amputee from the war.[3] Despite her injuries, she was awarded a medical waiver to continue serving in the Illinois Army National Guard for another ten years until she retired as a lieutenant colonel in 2014.
Duckworth ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the United States House of Representatives in 2006, then served as director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs from 2006 to 2009 and as assistant secretary for public and intergovernmental affairs at the United States Department of Veterans Affairs from 2009 to 2011. In 2012, Duckworth was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where she served two terms. She was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2016, defeating Republican incumbent Mark Kirk.[4]
Duckworth is the first Thai American woman elected to Congress, the first person born in Thailand elected to Congress, the first woman with a disability elected to Congress, the first female double amputee in the Senate, and the first senator to give birth while in office. She is the second Asian American woman to serve in the Senate, after Mazie Hirono.[5]
^"ประกาศสำนักนายกรัฐมนตรี เรื่อง พระราชทานเครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์ให้แก่ชาวต่างประเทศ (พันตรีหญิง ลัดดา แทมมี ดั๊กเวิร์ด)" [Announcement of the Prime Minister's Office on granting decorations to foreigners (Major Ladda Tammy Duckworth)] (PDF). Royal Thai Government Gazette (in Thai). January 15, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 5, 2017.
^Cite error: The named reference HuffPOWar was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Jennifer Bendery (November 8, 2016). "Tammy Duckworth Takes Back Obama's Illinois Senate Seat For Democrats". The Huffington Post. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
^"50 Women Who Made American Political History". Time. March 8, 2017. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
Ladda TammyDuckworth (born March 12, 1968) is an American politician and retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel serving as the junior United...
Senate to represent the state of Illinois. Incumbent Democratic senator TammyDuckworth was re-elected for a second term against former U.S. House of Representatives...
to TammyDuckworth, the U.S. representative from Illinois's 8th congressional district and a decorated combat veteran of the Iraq War. Duckworth became...
incumbent Senator Rick Santorum, and future United States senator TammyDuckworth in Illinois, then a Democratic congressional hopeful and an Army National...
election after defeating Ben Pursley in the primary. One-term Democrat TammyDuckworth was elected in 2016 with 54.9% of the vote. She defeated Republican...
for re-election to a second full term, but was defeated by Democrat TammyDuckworth. Kirk is the last Illinois Republican to have served in the U.S. Senate...
current U.S. senators are Democrats Dick Durbin (serving since 1997) and TammyDuckworth (serving since 2017). Shelby Moore Cullom was the longest serving senator...
Catherine Cortez Masto was elected as the first Latina senator, while TammyDuckworth was elected as the first female double amputee in the Senate. In a...
In 2016, Hillary Clinton carried Illinois with 55% of the vote, and TammyDuckworth defeated incumbent Mark Kirk 54% to 40%. George W. Bush and Donald...
hires at a veterans' nursing home: "Blagojevich's people ordered [TammyDuckworth] to take on some political operatives and I would call them goombahs...
January 20, 2022. Davey, Monica (November 28, 2008). "The New Team: TammyDuckworth". The New York Times. New York, NY. "U.S. Senate: States in the Senate...
previously served in the Hawaii State House and Honolulu City Council. TammyDuckworth, a Thai American Iraq War veteran, ran for Congress as a Democrat in...
deportation, Durbin was one of 22 senators to sign a letter led by TammyDuckworth arguing that the program allowed service members the ability "to fight...
Representative for DE-AL (1983–1993) Chris Coons, Delaware (2010–present) TammyDuckworth, Illinois (2017–present), U.S. Representative from IL-08 (2013–2017)...
Democrats from Illinois, including Governor J. B. Pritzker, Senator TammyDuckworth, and Mayor Lori Lightfoot, laid the groundwork to host the Convention...
Ayotte in New Hampshire and Mark Kirk in Illinois by Maggie Hassan and TammyDuckworth, respectively. Despite Republicans retaining control of the Senate...
seat in Illinois's 8th congressional district, and lost to TammyDuckworth. When Duckworth ran for the U.S. Senate in 2016, Krishnamoorthi again declared...
Senator Mark Kirk over his Democratic Party challenger Representative TammyDuckworth in his re-election bid to the United States Senate. Though Kirk later...
campaign manager. Lisa Blunt Rochester, Jim Clyburn, Chris Coons, TammyDuckworth, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Gretchen Whitmer were named national campaign...
storm the Capitol, calling Trump's speech metaphorical. Ed Markey and TammyDuckworth asked (Q7) when Trump learned of the breach and what actions he took...
things, writings by public figures including Suze Orman, Beyoncé, TammyDuckworth, Billie Jean King, Heidi Hartmann, Susan J. Douglas, Stephanie Coontz...
Angus King, Maine Gary Peters, Michigan Joe Manchin, West Virginia TammyDuckworth, Illinois Richard Blumenthal, Connecticut Tom Cotton, Arkansas, Ranking...
Republican presidential candidate Desmond Doss, WWII, Medal of Honor TammyDuckworth, U.S. Senator from Illinois Donnie Dunagan, actor Charles Durning,...
Global Information
United States
United States Army
Lieutenant Colonel