MARATHON RELEASES DEFINITIVE ‘MEET THE FRESHMEN’ GUIDE TO THE 117TH CONGRESS
Biennial report offers background and positions on key issues for all 68 new members of the Senate and House of Representatives
Marathon Strategies, a full-service communications and research firm, today released its biennial Meet the Freshmen guide to the newly elected members of Congress. With the 117th Congress now underway, the report provides an overview of the positions that new members of the Senate and House of Representatives have taken on the most important issues dominating the Beltway agenda in 2021. The full report can be downloaded here.
Sixty-eight new members of Congress were sworn into office this month amid a change of power in Washington, and corporations, trade associations and nonprofits with a stake in congressional decision-making must familiarize themselves with the new lineup on Capitol Hill. Marathon’s Meet the Freshmen focuses on the positions held by new members on the topics most likely to be taken up by Congress this year, including Big Tech and Wall Street antitrust legislation; COVID-19 relief and response; the economy, jobs and taxes; energy and the environment; healthcare; immigration; infrastructure; and police reform.
“Organizations always face the unique challenge of getting to know newly elected members of Congress, but with almost everyone operating virtually, it’s going to be even harder this year,” said Phil Singer, Marathon’s CEO and Founder. “Our Meet the Freshmen report helps organizations quickly understand the backgrounds and views of America’s new lawmakers and, in so doing, helps inform their public affairs and communications strategies in 2021 and beyond.”
The new class of lawmakers will be part of the most diverse Congress in history. A record 142 women are serving in Congress, breaking the previous record of 127 set in 2019. This includes the elections of six new women of color, including Rep. Cori Bush (MO-01), Missouri’s first Black congresswoman, and Rep. Nikema Williams (GA-05), who will ascend to the late Rep. John Lewis’s seat in Georgia. Rep. Marilyn Strickland (WA-10), Rep. Young Kim (CA-39), and Rep. Michelle Steel (CA-48) are the first Korean American woman elected to Congress. Rep. Mondaire Jones (NY-17) and Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15) are the first openly gay Black men elected to Congress. And in a historic election, Senator-elect Rev. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) will be the first Black senator from Georgia.
Meet the Freshmen was compiled using publicly available sources, including statements from each candidate’s campaign website, candidate questionnaires, social media reports, debates, interviews, and news reports.
Media Contact:
Scott Lusk
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