Guzman is leading a department that will shepherd an influx of federal cash to help businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. She says she wants to prioritize women and people of color.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley says a congressional internship “changed the trajectory” of her life, and she and other advocates say a lack of intern diversity causes pipeline problems.
Georgia has the most Black women in its legislature, at 39, but in many states representation still lags.
The U.S. House is taking up the issue this week after decades of organizing in statehouses.
The Virginia attorney general is considering “any and all options moving forward, including an appeal”; U.S. House is expected to take up a related resolution this month.
Legislators have filed dozens of bills that aim to change how people vote, and voting rights groups are pushing back.
The bill, which comes as a number of state legislatures push for new voting restrictions, faces steeper odds in the Senate.
Senate Democrats failed to garner enough support to consider a bill to recognize the Equal Rights Amendment as part of the Constitution.
Several statehouses are advancing bills that experts say will make it harder for people to vote.
It’s one of several states debating and enacting policies to help a woman-dominated industry that has been hit hard by the pandemic.