During her term as the first female Speaker of the Knesset, Dalia Itzik was called upon to take on another first when she became the first female Interim President of Israel in 2007.
As a Talmud scholar and a member of the progressive Israeli political party Yesh Atid, Ruth Calderon has sought to break down the traditional divide in Israeli society between right-wing Orthodoxy and secular liberalism.
A staunch Zionist and one of the first Knesset members, Beba Trachtenberg Idelson was a champion of religious freedom and women’s rights in the new State of Israel.
As president of Guyana for two years, Janet Rosenberg Jagan was the first American-born woman to serve as president of any country. Jagan was a student at the Cook County Nursing School in Chicago when she met Cheddi Jagan, a dentistry student.
Ellen Odette Cuffe, Lady Desart, was celebrated as the most important Jewish woman in Irish history for her boundless philanthropy and political acumen.
From her beginnings as a British officer and Haganah operative to her later years as an ambassador and Knesset member, Esther Herlitz shaped the essence of the young State of Israel.
Helene, queen of the Persian province of Adiabene, earned the respect of both the early rabbis and the chronicler Josephus for her leadership and unusual piety.
A lifelong diplomat with a strong record of defending women’s rights and human rights, Tamar Eshel capped her career with two terms as a member of the Knesset from 1977–1984.
In Switzerland, where women did not get the right to vote until 1971, Ruth Dreifuss made history when she became the country’s first woman president in 1999.
Rebelling against her privileged upbringing, Angelica Balabanoff embraced socialism and rose to become one of the most celebrated activists and politicians of her day.
Shulamit Aloni, the first Israeli woman to successfully found a political party, brought her zeal for education and empowerment to her career in the Knesset, helping generations of Israelis learn—and fight for—their rights.
As commanding officer of the Israeli Army’s Women’s Corps, Hedva Almog created training programs and promotion opportunities for female officers, working to create a better environment for the women who followed her.
Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky has earned a reputation as a liberal progressive for her stances on issues ranging from health care to marijuana legalization.
Congresswoman Susan Davis, the first Democrat in more than fifty years to serve more than one term for California’s 53rd district, has repeatedly fought for women’s health issues on both a state and local level.
An outspoken Democrat, Debbie Wasserman Schultz was entrusted with great responsibility for the party both in the US House of Representatives and as chair of the Democratic National Committee.
