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Georgia Lee Lusk | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromNew Mexico'sat-large district (seat 1) | |
| In office January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1949 | |
| Preceded by | Clinton P. Anderson |
| Succeeded by | John E. Miles |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Georgia Lee Witt (1893-05-12)May 12, 1893 |
| Died | January 5, 1971(1971-01-05) (aged 77) Albuquerque,New Mexico, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Gene Lusk |
| Alma mater | Highlands University |
Georgia Lee Witt Lusk (May 12, 1893 – January 5, 1971) was the first femaleU.S. Congressional representative fromNew Mexico, aneducator, and a devoted public servant.
She was born Georgia Lee Witt (her maiden name often shortened to 'Lee') on a ranch nearCarlsbad, New Mexico. After graduation fromCarlsbad High School in 1912 she attendedHighlands University inLas Vegas, New Mexico, andColorado State Teachers College atGreeley. She graduated from theNew Mexico State Teachers College (now Western New Mexico University) inSilver City in 1914. The following year she married a prominent rancher-banker namedDolph Lusk and taught school inEddy County. When her husband died in 1919, Georgia Lusk was pregnant and already had two sons, but she overcame these obstacles as a widow and became manager of the family ranch while continuing to teach and raise her children.
Her son,Gene Lusk, was a New Mexico State Senator.
In 1924, women across New Mexico shook up local politics. The first female member of theNew Mexico House of Representatives was elected, famed suffragistAdelina Otero-Warren shocked the state by winning theRepublican nomination to run - unsuccessfully - forNew Mexico's 1st Congressional District, and Georgia Lusk took her first steps into politics, being elected as superintendent ofLea County.
Lusk served in that capacity until 1929, as she made an unsuccessful bid for state Superintendent of Public Instruction in 1928. Though she lost her initial bid, she came back two years later in 1930 to win that office, and serve there until 1935. She briefly left politics to continue raising her children. She returned and during 1941 and 1942 Lusk was a rural school supervisor inGuadalupe County.
Lusk again served as State Superintendent from 1943 to 1947. It was during this time that Lusk provided New Mexico public schools with free textbooks and successfully lobbied the state legislature to fund a school construction plan, raise teacher salaries and institute a teacher's retirement program. These reforms drastically improved New Mexico's public education, and are perhaps Lusk's greatest mark upon the state.
Lusk attended theDemocratic National Conventions of 1928 - the first woman to do so for New Mexico - and 1948 as a New Mexico delegate.
In 1946 she entered the campaign for theDemocratic nomination for one of New Mexico's two at-large seats in theU.S. House of Representatives. She beat all odds to win the primary over six rivals, all of which were notable Democratic bosses. Lusk somehow defied and prevailed over the heavily entrenched patronage in the State Democratic Party, which sent shock waves through state politics but was overshadowed when she handily won the general election and became the first woman ever to represent New Mexico in theUnited States Congress.
As a member of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Lusk supported many of PresidentHarry S. Truman's administration's domestic programs (although she voted to override President Truman'sveto of theTaft-Hartley Act) and was a staunch backer of the administration'sforeign policy proposals, voting for assistance toGreece andTurkey and endorsing universal military training. She also supported establishment of a cabinet-levelDepartment of Education. Lusk ran for renomination to her at-large seat in the June 1948 primary but the enemies she made in 1946 did her in. She fell just short of the vote received by former GovernorJohn E. Miles. Another woman would not serve New Mexico in Congress untilHeather Wilson in 1998.
In September 1949 President Truman appointed her to theWar Claims Commission, where she served with other Democratic appointees until their dismissal by PresidentDwight D. Eisenhower in December 1953. Returning to New Mexico, Lusk was elected to two additional terms as state superintendent and served from 1955 to 1960.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromNew Mexico's at-large congressional district 1947–1949 | Succeeded by |
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| At-large seats (1912–1969) |
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