Barbara Lee

Barbara Jean Lee (; born July 16, 1946) is an American politician who served as a U.S. representative from California from 1998 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, Lee represented (numbered as the 9th district from 1998 to 2013 and as the 13th district from 2013 to 2023), which is based in Oakland and covers most of the northern part of Alameda County. According to the Cook Partisan Voting Index, it is one of the nation's most Democratic districts, with a rating of D+40.

Born and raised in Texas, Lee was educated at Mills College and the University of California, Berkeley. She started her career by working on the presidential campaign of Shirley Chisholm, and she later was involved with the Black Panther Party. After working as chief of staff for U.S. Representative Ron Dellums, Lee served in the California State Assembly from 1990 to 1996 and in the California State Senate from 1996 to 1998.

Lee was elected to the House of Representatives in a 1998 special election to succeed Dellums. A noted progressive, she chaired the Congressional Progressive Caucus from 2005 to 2009 and the Congressional Black Caucus from 2009 to 2011. In addition, she is the vice chair and a founding member of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus, a co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, and a co-chair of the House Democratic Steering Committee. She has played a major role in the antiwar movement, notably in her vocal criticism of the Iraq War and for being the only member of Congress to vote against the authorization of use of force following the September 11 attacks.

In 2024, Lee chose not to pursue re-election in the House and instead ran for Senate to succeed Dianne Feinstein. Lee lost in the jungle primary to Republican Steve Garvey and fellow House Democrat Adam Schiff, who won the seat in the general election. In January 2025, Lee announced her campaign for mayor of Oakland following the recall of Sheng Thao. Provided by Wikipedia