WASHINGTON — When the 113th Congress is sworn in on Jan. 3, it will have a record-breaking number of female senators — the most in history.
“ABC World News” anchor Diane Sawyer gathered nearly all of the women, 19 of the 20, for an exclusive conversation in the historic Kennedy Caucus Room. They discussed the political climate in the nation’s capital, what it means for one-fifth of the Senate seats to be held by women, and the major issues facing the country, including the nation’s fiscal house.
The extended interview will air on Jan. 3, the first day of the new congressional term, on “World News with Diane Sawyer” and “Nightline.” Portions of the interview will also be highlighted on “Good Morning America” as well as ABCNews.com, Newsmakers on Yahoo!, ABC News Radio, and ABC’s local affiliates.
When voters made their voices heard on election night, they sent five additional women to the Senate: Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
The new senators join Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), the “dean” of women in the Senate, who has been the senator from Maryland since 1987, and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who will be the longest-serving female Republican in January, along with 14 other returning lawmakers: Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn,), Mary Landrieu (D-La,), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo,), Patty Murray (D-Wash,), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.).
This interview follows Sawyer’s historic gathering of the 16 female members of the Senate in 2007.
“World News with Diane Sawyer” airs at 6:30 p.m., ET on ABC. Follow Sawyer and the “World News” team online: @DianeSawyer; @ABCWorldNews; facebook.com/DianeSawyer; facebook.com/WorldNews.
“Nightline” airs at 11:35 p.m., ET on ABC. Follow “Nightline” online: @Nightline and at facebook.com/Nightline.