Lauren Underwood

Lauren Underwood is the U.S. Representative for Illinois's 14th Congressional District, first elected in 2018. A member of the Democratic Party, she made history as the first woman, person of color, and millennial to represent her district, and was the youngest Black woman ever elected to Congress at the time of her swearing-in. Underwood grew up in Naperville, Illinois, and earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Michigan, followed by dual Master of Science in Nursing and Master of Public Health degrees from Johns Hopkins University. Before entering elective office, Underwood was a registered nurse and served as a career public servant at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). During the Obama administration, she was appointed as a Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, where she worked on implementing the Affordable Care Act and managing public health emergencies. Her professional background also includes teaching as an adjunct instructor for Georgetown University’s online master’s program in nursing and working for a Medicaid managed care plan to improve healthcare quality and cost-efficiency.

Underwood’s policy platform is centered on healthcare, where she advocates for expanding the Affordable Care Act, lowering prescription drug costs, and addressing maternal mortality through the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act. On the economy, she supports middle-class tax relief, increasing the availability of affordable housing, and investing in infrastructure and rural broadband. Regarding immigration, she favors comprehensive reform that includes a pathway to citizenship for 'Dreamers' and modernizing the agricultural guest worker program while ensuring border security. Her environmental positions emphasize clean energy transitions and the remediation of local superfund sites. In foreign policy, she focuses on global public health security and strengthening democratic institutions.