Celebrating 30+ years of Supporting Women in Politics and Public Policy
The Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus is a non-partisan organization founded in 1971 to maximize the participation of women of all ages in the political process and to increase the number of women appointed and elected to public office and public policy positions.

History

1971 - Marge Schiller and Anne Lewis from Massachusetts attend the first organizing meeting of National Women's Political Caucus (www.nwpc.org) in Washington D.C. Upon her return from Washington D.C., Schiller forms the Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus.

1972 - Over 500 women attended the first organizing meeting of the Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus, which was held at Roberts Auditorium at Boston College. The group's focus was on organizing a women's grassroots organization that would promote the election of women to increase the political power of women in society.

1973 - Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus sponsors first annual informal Campaign Skills Training.

1974 - Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus begins organized efforts to support individual women running for office.

1980 - Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus is the stimulus for the formation of the Caucus of Women Legislators.

1985 - MWPC holds the inaugural Tribute to Abigail Adams Event at the USS Constitution Museum.

1986 - Evelyn Murphy is elected Lieutenant Governor, becoming the first woman elected statewide.

1987 - MWPC hires its first Executive Director.

1990 - NWPC President Harriet Woods comes to Massachusetts and conducts a successful media tour in Boston.

1995 - MWPC begins its Red Alert Networking Events.

2001 - MWPC sponsors the first Good Guys Awards.

2001 - Governor Jane Swift is inaugurated as Massachusetts first woman governor when Governor Paul Cellucci is appointed as Ambassador to Canada.

2002 - MWPC co-founds the Massachusetts Government Appointments Project (MassGAP) to increase the number of women to appointed high-level positions in state government.

2006 - MWPC PAC-endorsed candidate Martha Coakley is elected the Commonwealth's first woman Attorney General.

2007 - MWPC PAC endorses Niki Tsongas, who wins the special election to become the first woman to serve in the Massachusetts congressional delegation in over 25 years.

2007 - Therese Murray is elected the first woman President of the Massachusetts Senate.

2007 - Lisa Wong becomes the Commonwealth's first Asian-American woman mayor when she is elected Mayor of Fitchburg.

2008 - The percentage of women in the Massachusetts legislature reaches its peak, at 27%.

2009 - Former MWPC Board Member Ayanna Pressley becomes the first women of color ever elected to the Boston City Council.  She is among the first women to be endorsed under the MWPC PAC's new municipal endorsement program.

2010 - MWPC PAC-endorsed candidate Suzanne Bump becomes the Commonwealth's first woman State Auditor.

2011 - Patricia Haddad becomes the Commonwealth's first woman Speaker Pro Tempore

2012 - Elizabeth Warren becomes the first woman to serve as a US Senator from Massachusetts.

2012 - Massachusetts sees an increase in the percentage of women serving in the state legislature for the first time since 1999. The representation of women increased from 24-26%.