“My first direct encounter with the military was when I joined ROTC as a graduate student, although my father, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, can trace the military service in our family all the way back to the Revolutionary War.”

American politician and Army National Guard veteran

Ladda Tammy Duckworth is an American politician and Army National Guard veteran. She has served as the junior United States senator from Illinois since 2017 and previously represented Illinois's 8th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2013 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Duckworth's public career has centered on federal office and military service. She is known for her work in Congress and the Senate, where her name is associated with Illinois politics and national policymaking.