WASHINGTON, DC — Last week, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers was elected to be the next House Republican conference chair — making her the most powerful Republican woman in the House.
In a competitive race for the slot, she received support from Speaker John Boehner, as well as 15 committee chairs and other members of leadership.
As part of her bid for the job, McMorris Rodgers urged her colleagues to vote for her to boost the party's standing among women — an issue that the 43-year-old lawmaker has long been a champion of within her party.
Although staunchly conservative, even by House Republican standards, McMorris Rodgers is a loyal party soldier, and she has moved up quickly through the GOP ranks.
But despite her status as one of the most powerful Republican women in the country, her profile is relatively low within the general public.
Below, a few facts about one of the GOP's rising stars.