Jordan-Huerta Women's Leadership Program
About the Jordan-Huerta Program
Despite significant gains in improving the representation of women in our nation’s political institutions, only a quarter of elected positions in the United States are currently held by women.
Building on the success of the YEO Women’s Caucus and named in honor of PeopleFor Co-Founder Barbara Jordan and longtime Board Member Dolores Huerta, the Jordan-Huerta YEO Women’s Leadership Program will invest in the leadership of women-identifying elected officials.
This program will support women identifying elected officials in the challenges of navigating public office, provide them with continued professional development, and elevate their voices and leadership within the national progressive movement, enabling them to seek higher office and pave the way for more women in political office across the country.
Barbara Jordan
Barbara Jordan, a co-founder of People For the American Way, a civil rights leader, and attorney, became the first African American elected to the Texas Senate in 1966, and the first woman and first African American elected to Congress from Texas in 1972. Jordan was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton in 1994 for her work as a political trailblazer.
While Jordan never explicitly acknowledged her sexual orientation in public, she was open about her life partner of nearly 30 years, Nancy Earl, and has later become celebrated as an icon in the LGBTQ+ community.
Dolores
Huerta
Dolores Huerta is a PeopleFor board member, iconic labor leader, and civil rights activist who, alongside Cesar Chavez, co-founded the United Farm Workers of America.
From 1988 to 1993, Huerta served on the U.S. Commission on Agricultural Workers, established by Congress to evaluate special worker provisions and labour markets in the agriculture industry. In 2002 she founded the Dolores Huerta Foundation, which was involved in community organizing. Her numerous honours include induction (1993) into the National Women’s Hall of Fame. She also was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.
Leading the Way
Meet the 2023
Jordan-Huerta
Fellows
Our 2023 Cohort of Jordan-Huerta Fellows was a diverse and powerful group of elected women fighting for truth, justice, and The American Way in communities across the country.
Over half of our fellows are glass ceiling- breakers: they're either the first woman, first person of color, or youngest person to serve in their roles.
