Susanna Salter was the first woman elected to any political office in the United States, having been elected as Mayor of Argonia in Kansas in 1887, at the age of just 27.
Salter was an active member of the Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and was nominated for office on the Prohibition Party ticket by several Argonia men as a joke,
Salter received two-thirds of the votes and was elected on April 4th, 1887, just weeks after Kansas women had gained the right to vote in city elections.
Mrs Salter lived to an incredible 101 years old!
See http://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/susanna-madora-salter/12191
Salter was an active member of the Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and was nominated for office on the Prohibition Party ticket by several Argonia men as a joke,
Salter received two-thirds of the votes and was elected on April 4th, 1887, just weeks after Kansas women had gained the right to vote in city elections.
Mrs Salter lived to an incredible 101 years old!
See http://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/susanna-madora-salter/12191
Gladys Spellman, March 1, 1918 – June 19, 1988
Gladys Spellman was an American teacher and PTA President.
She was chair of the Board of Commissioners of Prince George's County and president of the National Association of Counties before being elected to Congress in 1974.
Spellman's interests included employment, housing policy and consumer protection and she was involve in fighting for women's rights and against disability discrimination.