Connie Morella facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Connie Morella
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| United States Ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development | |
| In office August 1, 2003 – August 6, 2007 |
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| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Jeanne Phillips |
| Succeeded by | Christopher Egan |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland's 8th district |
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| In office January 3, 1987 – January 3, 2003 |
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| Preceded by | Michael Barnes |
| Succeeded by | Chris Van Hollen |
| Member of the Maryland House of Delegates from the 16th district |
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| In office January 10, 1979 – January 3, 1987 |
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| Preceded by | John Ward |
| Succeeded by | Brian Frosh Gilbert Genn |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Constance Albanese
February 12, 1931 Somerville, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Anthony Morella
(m. 1954; died 2020) |
| Education | Boston University (BA) American University (MA) |
Constance "Connie" Morella (born February 12, 1931) is an American politician and diplomat. She served as a representative for Maryland in the United States House of Representatives from 1987 to 2003. Later, she became the U.S. Ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) from 2003 to 2007.
Today, she teaches at American University as an "Ambassador in Residence" for the Women & Politics Institute. In 2010, President Barack Obama appointed her to the American Battle Monuments Commission.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Connie Morella was born Constance Albanese in Somerville, Massachusetts. After finishing Somerville High School in 1948, she went to Boston University. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1954.
Her family were mostly Democrats who worked in manual jobs. But Connie became a Republican after meeting Anthony C. Morella. He had worked for more open-minded Republicans. After they got married, they moved to Bethesda, Maryland. When Connie's sister passed away, Connie and Tony adopted her six children. They already had three children of their own.
Morella worked as a high school teacher in Montgomery County, Maryland from 1957 to 1961. She then earned a Master of Arts degree from American University in 1967. She taught there from 1968 to 1970. After that, she became a professor at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland. She continued teaching until 1985, when she decided to focus fully on her political career.
Political Career
In 1971, Connie Morella was chosen to be a founding member of the Montgomery County Commission for Women. This group advised on issues important to women. She became its president in 1973. She also became very active in the League of Women Voters.
In 1974, she first ran for a seat in the Maryland House of Delegates, which is part of Maryland's state government. She didn't win that time. But she ran again in 1978 and won! She was reelected for another term before deciding to run for the United States Congress.
Serving in Congress
In 1986, Morella ran for an open seat in the U.S. House of Representatives for Maryland's 8th congressional district. She won the election, becoming the first woman to hold this seat. Even though she was a Republican in an area that usually voted for Democrats, people really liked her. She was re-elected seven times, serving until 2002.
Morella was known for being an independent voice. She often voted differently from many in her own party. For example, she voted against making English the official language of the United States. She also voted against a bill to fight illegal immigration in 1996.
She was the only Republican in Congress to vote against using military force in Iraq in both 1991 and 2002. She worked hard on issues like human rights, women's health, and stopping domestic violence. She was also a member of the Science and Government Reform Committees.
Morella represented the U.S. at important international meetings. She was a delegate to the 1994 U.N. conference on population in Cairo. She also co-chaired the U.S. delegation to the 1995 U.N. conference on women in Beijing. She helped create laws like the 1992 Battered Women's Testimony Act. This law helped women who experienced domestic abuse get legal help. She also supported the Judicial Training Act, which taught judges about domestic violence cases.
After her party gained more power in the House in 1994, Morella sometimes disagreed with her party's leaders. In 1998, she was one of only a few Republicans who voted against all the articles of impeachment against President Bill Clinton.
Electoral Challenges and Defeat
Morella represented a district that was becoming more and more Democratic. She faced tough challenges in her elections. Even though she won in years when many Democrats were elected, her party's low popularity eventually made it harder for her.
After the 2000 Census, the district lines were redrawn. This made her district even more Democratic. In 2002, she ran against Chris Van Hollen. He defeated her with 52 percent of the vote. Since then, no Republican has won more than 40 percent of the vote in that district.
In 2013, Morella supported same-sex marriage in a Supreme Court case. In 2020, she publicly supported Joe Biden, a Democrat, for president. She was one of many former Republican lawmakers to do so.
Ambassador to the OECD
On July 11, 2003, President George W. Bush chose Connie Morella to be the U.S. Ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The OECD is a group of countries that work together on economic issues.
The United States Senate approved her appointment on July 31. She officially started her role on October 8, 2003. She was the first former member of Congress to serve as ambassador to the OECD. She served as Ambassador until August 6, 2007.
Awards and Honors
Connie Morella has received many honorary doctorates from universities. These include American University, Boston University, and the University of Maryland.
She has also received many awards for her public service. She was inducted into the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame. She received awards from the American Medical Association and the American Bar Association. She also got the Hubert H. Humphrey Civil Rights Award for her work on equality. Italy awarded her the Medal of the Legion of Merit.
In 2013, she received the Knight Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. This award recognized her work in strengthening ties between the U.S. Congress and Germany. In 2016, the Japanese government honored her with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star. This was for her efforts to improve the relationship between the U.S. and Japan.
On April 14, 2018, the Bethesda Library branch in Montgomery County was renamed the Connie Morella Library in her honor.
Images for kids
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Official portrait of Connie Morella as U.S. Ambassador to the OECD.
