The Honorable Elizabeth Holtzman

U.S. Representative from New York (January 3, 1973–January 3, 1981)

Elizabeth (Liz) Holtzman pulled off a major upset when she defeated longtime Representative and Judiciary Committee Chairman, Emanuel Celler, to win a seat in the 93rd Congress (1973–1975). The youngest woman ever elected to Congress at the time (31)—a record that would stand for more than four decades—Holtzman’s grassroots campaign in her New York City district centered on her opposition to the Vietnam War. In her interview, Holtzman, a Harvard Law School graduate, speaks of how the civil rights movement influenced her decision to seek political office as an avenue to work for social justice. After her election, she recalls her efforts to differentiate herself from her predecessor. Despite her request for a different assignment, she received a spot on the Judiciary Committee. Ironically, the assignment put her at the center of one of the defining political moments of her generation since the panel oversaw the impeachment hearings for President Richard M. Nixon in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal. Holtzman shares her memories of the tumultuous period, including the work of the Judiciary Committee, her questioning of President Gerald R. Ford, and the importance of having women on the panel.

A consistent and vocal supporter of women’s rights, Holtzman cofounded the Congresswomen’s Caucus in 1977. Holtzman describes the early years of the caucus as well as the intricate whip operation she and her women colleagues successfully organized to pass an extension of the Equal Rights Amendment in 1977. Known as a passionate and hard-working legislator, Holtzman’s interview provides a first-hand account of the changing role of women in Congress during the 1970s.

• Transcript (PDF)
• Deed of Gift (PDF)

HOLTZMAN, Elizabeth, a Representative from New York; born in Brooklyn, N.Y., August 11, 1941; graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School, Brooklyn, N.Y., 1958; B.A., Radcliffe College, 1962; J.D., Harvard Law School, 1965; admitted to the New York bar in 1966 and commenced practice in New York City; Democratic State committeewoman and district leader 1970–1972; assistant to Mayor John V. Lindsay, 1969–1970; founder, Brooklyn Women’s Political Caucus; delegate to Democratic National Convention, 1972; elected as a Democrat to the Ninety-third and to the three succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1973–January 3, 1981); was not a candidate for reelection in 1980 but was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the United States Senate; faculty, New York University Law School and Graduate School of Public Administration, 1981–1982; district attorney, Kings County, Brooklyn, N.Y., 1982–1989; New York City comptroller, 1990–1993; unsuccessful candidate in 1992 for nomination to the United States Senate; resumed the practice of law; is a resident of Brooklyn, N.Y.

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