She’s an associate of the Democratic Party. She stepped down from Congress in February 2011 to get to be the President and CEO of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. She succeeded former Congressman Lee Hamilton and is the very first woman to head the 45 year old “living memorial” to America’s 28th President.
Harman was elected to Congress in 1992 and became the first Smith College grad to be elected to Congress. In 1994, she just survived reelection in a heavily Republican year, winning by 811 votes. Harman failed to run for the 106th United States Congress in 1998, instead entering the 1998 California gubernatorial race. It was during that race that she was called “the top Republican in the Democratic Party”. Harman won her old seat in 2000, and was easily reelected in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, and 2010. She made numerous congressional fact finding assignments to hotspots all over the world, including North Korea, Syria, Libya, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and Guantanamo Bay. During her long public career, Harman continues to be acknowledged as a national specialist in the nexus of security and public policy problems. She received the Defense Department Medal for Eminent Service in 1998, the CIA Agency Cachet Medal in 2007, as well as the CIA Director’s Award as well as the Director of National Intelligence Distinguished Public Service Medal in 2011.