Dear Friends,
It is my great pleasure to join with my colleagues of the 123rd Legislature in welcoming you to the Maine State House, and the State Senate. My fellow senators and I are pleased and honored that you have chosen to stop by this web site, and we sincerely hope you enjoy your visit.
On December 6th 2006, I was re-elected by my fellow senators for the honor and privilege of serving a second term as Senate President of the Maine State Senate. This is the first time in the history of our state a woman has served more than one term in this office. Since women obtained the right the vote in 1920, their role in the political process has evolved significantly. In Maine, women entered the political arena in 1927 with the election of the first two women senators, Dora Pinkham of Fort Kent and Katherine C. Allen of Hampden. The political landscape of the Maine Senate was once again forever changed when the first female senator entered into a leadership position with the election of Minette H. Cummings of Newport in 1975, as Assistant Majority Leader. With the election of the first female Senate President, Beverly Daggett of Augusta, the 121st Legislature ushered in a new era and forever altered the definition of a woman’s role in the Maine Senate. I am proud to be able to follow in her footsteps.
We are a citizen legislature – we are mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, we are teachers, librarians, farmers, lawyers, innkeepers, and social workers, to name a few. We are a part-time legislature, but our work serving the people of Maine is never done.
While I am fortunate enough to serve as the Senate President, I hold no more claim to the Senate chamber than the people of Maine – it is the people’s chamber, and it is open for all to take pleasure in, and I am certain you will. Thank you for stopping by and enjoy your visit.
Sincerely,
Beth Edmonds
President of the Senate