Madeleine Bordallo

Madeleine Bordallo
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Guam's At-large district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2003
Preceded by	Robert Underwood
Lieutenant Governor of Guam
In office January 2, 1995 – January 3, 2003
Governor	Carl Gutierrez
Preceded by	Frank Blas
Succeeded by	Kaleo Moylan
Personal details
Born	(1933-05-31) May 31, 1933 Graceville, Minnesota, U.S.
Political party	Democratic Party
Spouse(s)	Ricardo Bordallo (1953–1990)
Alma mater	St. Mary's College, Indiana St. Catherine University
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Madeleine Mary Zeien Bordallo (born May 31, 1933) is the Delegate from the United States territory of Guam to the United States House of Representatives.

She is the first woman ever to serve as Guam's Delegate, the first female Lieutenant Governor of Guam (from 1995 to 2003), the first female candidate for Governor of Guam (in 1990), and the first female Democrat elected to the Legislature of Guam. Her 1990 campaign also made her the first non-Chamorro gubernatorial candidate in Guam. As the wife of Ricky Bordallo, she was also the First Lady of Guam from 1975 to 1978 and 1983 to 1986.

Biography

Madeleine Mary Zeien was born in Graceville, Minnesota to a military family and grew up on Guam after her father was stationed there. She attended St. Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana and the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul, Minnesota. Bordallo was a television host and presenter for KUAM-TV on the island of Guam during the 1950s and 1960s.

Bordallo was married to Ricardo Bordallo, who served as Governor of Guam from 1975 to 1979 and from 1983 to 1987. While serving as first lady, she worked to emphasize the arts in the classroom and to increase awareness of the local Chamorro culture. Bordallo served five terms as a senator in the Guam Legislature, serving from 1981 to 1982 and again from 1986 to 1994. During the 1988 U.S. presidential election, Bordallo was a member of Guam's uncommitted delegation to the 1988 Democratic National Convention.

Bordallo and Carl T.C. Gutierrez

Mrs. Bordallo was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of Guam in 1990, following the death of her husband. Ping Duenas ran as Bordallo's running mate for lieutenant governor in the 1990 gubernatorial election.

In 1994, she ran alongside Carl T.C. Gutierrez on the Democratic ticket and was elected Lieutenant Governor of Guam, serving from 1995 to 2002, the first woman in Guam's history to hold this position. In this role, she worked to promote tourism and environmentalism.

In 2002, as Bordallo reached her term limit and as Delegate Robert Underwood vacated his seat and attempted to run for governor, she campaigned for and was elected as a Democrat to the House, serving from January 2003 to the present, and is the first woman to represent Guam in Congress. She is one of six non-voting delegates to the House of Representatives. While in Congress, she has devoted herself to economic issues and has helped to pass legislation that aids small businesses on Guam. She has also been involved in military and environmental issues.

In April 2008, Bordallo apologized after an investigative report by the Pacific Daily News revealed that she and Senator Jesse Lujan both claimed to have degrees on their official biographies and resumes when they had not graduated from college.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Readiness (Ranking Member)
  • Subcommittee on Military Personnel
• Committee on Natural Resources
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources
  • Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Affairs

Caucus memberships

• Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (Vice Chair)
• Congressional China Caucus (Co-Chair)
• International Conservation Caucus
• Long Range Strike Caucus
• United States-Philippines Friendship Caucus
• Wounded to Work Caucus

Competition

In January 2012, Republican Guam Senator Frank Blas Jr. announced he will challenge Bordallo in the upcoming November election for her delegate seat. Bordallo defeated Blas in the November general election. She received 19,765 votes (58%) to his 12,995 votes (38%)

In May 2012, Yale graduate and former White House intern Karlo Dizon, Democrat, also announced his bid as delegate to Congress.

References

• Directory of women experts in Asia and the Pacific, United Nations, Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, 1987

External links

• Madeleine Bordallo at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Congressional Website

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Robert Underwood	Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives from Guam's At-large congressional district 2003–present	Incumbent
United States order of precedence
Preceded by Donna Christian-Christensen as Delegate to the House of Representatives from the Virgin Islands's At-large district	Order of Precedence of the United States	Succeeded by Pedro Pierluisi as Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico
Political offices
Preceded by Frank Blas	Lieutenant Governor of Guam 1995–2003	Succeeded by Kaleo Moylan