In the Spotlight: Elizabeth Dole

Elizabeth Hanford Dole was born on July 26, 1936 in Salisbury, North Carolina. Her parents were John and Mary Hanford. Elizabeth graduated from Duke University in 1958 as a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She earned a master's degree in Education from Harvard in 1960 and a J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1965. She was one of only 24 women in her law school class of 550. 

Political Career: Elizabeth Dole first engaged in national politics in the 1960s as a volunteer for then Senator Lyndon B. Johnson’s vice president and presidential campaign. In 2000, she became the first viable female presidential candidate from a major political party. Elizabeth Dole withdrew her candidacy in 1999, and endorsed George W. Bush for President. In 2002, she won her election for U.S. Senate in North Carolina and became the first woman to serve that role in the state. During her time in the U.S. Senate  Elizabeth Dole served as the National Republican Senatorial Committee, 2005-2007. She was also the first woman to serve in that position. 

Public Service: Elizabeth Dole worked in President Johnson’s administration at theDepartment of Health, Education and Welfare, and then for the White House Office of Consumer Affairs. Elizabeth also worked in the Nixon administration as the Deputy Director of the Office of Consumer Affairs. In 1972, President Nixon appointed her to the Federal Trade Commission. In 1979, she stepped down from her position to help her husband, Senator Robert Dole with his campaign for president in 1980. 

Elizabeth Dole currently resides in Washington, DC. In 2012, she founded the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, which provides military and veteran caregivers help they need to take care of Americans who have served in our armed forces. 

We thank Senator Elizabeth Dole for her outstanding service to the great state of North Carolina and our beloved Country! We also thank her for paving the way for other Republican women to serve in the highest levels of government. 

Will you be the next Elizabeth Dole? Learn more at the Dolley Madison Project.