Planned Parenthood Action Center

Jan Schakowsky
Democrat
United States House, 9th Congressional District of Illinois

Email: sarah@janschakowsky.org
Website: janschakowsky.org
Issues: Healthcare, Women's Rights, Economic and Social Justice, Education, Immigrants, Seniors

Representative Jan Schakowsky is 100% pro-choice and has been endorsed by Planned Parenthood Illinois Action. Jan Schakowsky knows that women don't turn to politicians for advice about birth control, mammograms, or cancer screenings. She believes that government should not be involved in a woman's personal medical decisions.

Representative Jan Schakowsky is a proven leader when it comes to women. She has a 100% voting record on Planned Parenthood issues. Jan doesn't just vote for women, she speaks out for women. Over the past two years throughout all of the anti-woman attacks in Congress, Schakowsky has appeared on numerous news programs to set the record straight on the harms of defunding Planned Parenthood and restricting access to preventive health care such as breast and cervical cancer screenings. Here is just one example of how Jan defends women every day as a member of Congress.

Biography:

Jan Schakowsky was elected to represent Illinois' 9th Congressional District on November 3, 1998. She serves in the House Democratic Leadership as Chief Deputy Whip and as a member of the Steering and Policy Committee. She is a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, where she will work to accomplish her top priority in Congress -- providing universal healthcare coverage for all Americans. On that Committee, she serves as Vice-Chair of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection and as a member of the Subcommittee on Health and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

Schakowsky is a leading advocate for women's issues in Congress, sponsoring legislation that would prevent violence against immigrant women, establish transitional housing for women and children who are victims of abuse, and commemorate International Women's Day. During the 110th Congress, Schakowsky served as Democratic Vice Chair of the bipartisan Women's Caucus.

Prior to her election to Congress, Schakowsky represented the 18th District in the Illinois General Assembly for eight years. She served as a Democratic Floor Leader and as Secretary of the Conference of Women Legislators.

For twenty years prior to her election to the State House, Schakowsky fought for the public interest and rights of Illinois citizens. As Program Director of Illinois Public Action (1976-1985), the state's largest public interest organization, she fought for energy reform and stronger protection from toxic chemicals. As Director of the Illinois State Council of Senior Citizens from 1985-1990, she organized across the state for lower cost prescription drugs and tax relief for seniors, financial protection for the spouses of nursing home residents and other benefits for the elderly. She has been deeply involved in the fight to protect women's reproductive freedom.

Schakowsky resides in Evanston, Illinois with her husband Robert Creamer. She has three children, Ian, Mary, and stepdaughter Lauren Creamer, and four grandchildren, Isabel, Eve, Lucy, and William. She graduated from the University of Illinois in 1965 with a B.S. in Elementary Education.

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This post was created by Planned Parenthood Illinois Action (PPIA). PPIA is an independent, nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization formed as the advocacy and political arm of Planned Parenthood of Illinois (PPIL).

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