Rep. Tulsi Gabbard
Born: April 12, 1981
Birthplace: Leloaloa, American Samoa
Age on Inauguration Day: 39
Party affiliation: Democrat
Campaign website: tulsi2020.com
Education: Hawaii Pacific University (Bachelor’s degree in business administration)
Professions: Major, U.S. Army National Guard
Public office: Hawaii state House of Representatives, 2002-2004; Honolulu City Council, 2010-2012; U.S. representative, 2013-present
Personal: Gabbard was married to Eduardo Tamayo in 2002, and they divorced in 2006. She’s been married to Abraham Williams since 2015. Gabbard has no children from either marriage.
Life and career highlights
- At 21, she became the youngest person elected to the Hawaii state legislature.
- Left office in 2003 to join the Army, in which she still serves as member of the Hawaii Army National Guard. Served two tours in the Middle East, including 12 months in Iraq.
- First Hindu elected to Congress.
- Resigned as vice chairwoman of Democratic National Committee in 2016 to support Sen. Bernie Sanders for president. She also started a petition to end the Democrats’ use of superdelegates toward choosing a presidential nominee.
- In her earlier years, Gabbard was an opponent of same-sex marriage. During her 2012 run for Congress, she apologized for her past anti-LGBT comments and has since supported efforts to promote LGBT equality.
Sources: Congress.gov, heightline.com; Gabbard’s official bio; CNN; Politico