Title: Georgetown Alumni Sworn Into 115th U.S. Congress
Georgetown’s long history of alumni serving in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives continues as 28 Georgetown graduates are sworn into the 115th U.S. Congress.
January 3, 2017 – A total of 28 Georgetown graduates were sworn in as part of the 115th U.S. Congress on Jan. 3, continuing the university’s long history of alumni serving the country.
Six of the alumni representing the districts across the country in the U.S. House of Representatives and one in the Senate were newly elected to those chambers – including Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington) (C’86), the first woman of South Asian descent to be elected to the House.
Other newly elected House members include:
Rep. John Faso (R-New York) (L’79)
Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wisconsin) (G’12,13, 15)
Rep. Trey Hollingsworth (R-Indiana) (G’14)
Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Florida) (G’04)
Rep. Francis Rooney (R-Florida) (C’75, L’78)
Newly elected Sen. Christopher Van Hollen (D-Maryland) leaves his House seat to join six incumbent alumni in the Senate:
Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) (C’74, M’78)
Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Illinois) (SFS’66, L’69)
Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) (L’78)
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) (L’64)
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) (C’80)
Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) (G’93, L’93).
Georgetown faculty member Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-Washington, D.C.), joined the university’s law school in 1982 and has served in the House for more than 26 years.
Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-South Carolina) (SFS’89), who has served in the House since 2011, has been nominated by President-elect Trump to serve as director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Georgetown’s long tradition of having a presence in Congress can be traced back to the university’s first student – William Gaston.
Gaston served in the House as a Federalist from North Carolina between 1813 and 1817. He played a significant role in helping Georgetown obtain the federal charter that allowed it to award academic degrees. The charter was signed into law by President James Madison on March 1, 1815.