At its most recent meeting, the DLCC Board of Directors voted to formally welcome Arizona House Minority Leader Chad Campbell as its newest member.

Leader Campbell adds a strongly progressive voice to the national political scene. At a time when Republicans have launched unprecedented attacks against public education across the country, Leader Campbell has remained a tireless advocate for children and educational issues through his ongoing work with Communities in Schools of Arizona and the Center for Progressive Leadership, as well as his former work with Children's Action Alliance, the state's leading non-profit organization fighting for children and families.

As a legislator and a caucus leader, Campbell has earned frequent honors for his effectiveness on behalf of early literacy, environmental protection, and the working families of Arizona.

And best of all, Leader Campbell knows that deepening GOP radicalism must be confronted repeatedly and tirelessly, and he’s willing to bypass the traditional media filter to do it. We were particular fans of his 2010 Huffington Post column, “A Top 10 List of the Absurd Republican Legislative Ideas in Arizona.” (Sadly, some of the most extreme ideas on that list were actually passed by the GOP-controlled legislature.)

Leader Campbell represents Legislative District 14, based in Phoenix, Arizona.

In Iowa, the governor's legislative will can be overridden; Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal's cannot.

And that means if Iowa Republicans expect any of their agenda to be enacted over the next two years, they’ll first need permission from the famously thoughtful and pragmatic Gronstal:

His position as majority leader gives him sole authority to decide what bills the Senate will debate. Republicans will take control of the governor's office and Iowa House next month, but Gronstal will control the fate of their agenda for state government.

Everyone who knows him well, Republican or Democrat, describes him as a brilliant strategist. Although his wit and genial disposition usually mask his competitive side, he can be a bare-knuckled brawler.

At stake for Iowans will be action or stalemate on bills to ban same-sex marriage, restrict abortion, cut taxes and make the regulatory climate more business-friendly.

In sessions past, Senator Gronstal has had good working relationships with colleagues of all political stripes, no matter which party held the majority. But he knows that this year, it could be more difficult than ever to convince GOP legislators to behave reasonably.

Senator Gronstal earned national prominence for his promise to uphold the Iowa Supreme Court ruling that established Iowa as a marriage equality state – a promise he’s kept, repeatedly, using the full authority of the Majority Leader’s office. That, in turn, means Senator Gronstal will probably be the #2 target of national conservative groups in 2012, second only to President Obama.

But Senator Gronstal has built a long record as a thoughtful pragmatist and a brilliant legislator, able to tackle complex issues and build support for legislation across the political spectrum. And the former shipping clerk’s notorious frugality means he’ll always be in touch with the day-to-day struggles of working families in western Iowa:

For Gronstal, repairing a vacuum cleaner has a quick and satisfying finish, unlike crafting legislation, where the end game often isn't clear. A determined Mr. Fix-it, he once jacked up his house and built a new foundation entirely on his own. (He was the only guy in his neighborhood with a 30-ton hydraulic jack. He had his own dump truck, too, purchased for $400 with a blown engine that he replaced himself.)

Gronstal is one of five children of the vice president of Council Bluffs Savings Bank - a bank he and relatives still own - and he was taught to live beneath his means. When his two daughters were little, if a balloon popped, they'd say: "Save the pieces. Daddy will fix it."

Life in the Gronstal household has long meant used clothing, well-worn furniture, infrequent vacations, no credit card debt, and no-frills cars.

Since Senator Gronstal became the Chairman of our DLCC Board of Directors, he’s brought that same combination of earnestness, brilliance, and frugality to our organization. And as any of our visitors will attest, we have the well-worn furniture to prove it.

Last week at a meeting in Louisville, the DLCC’s Board of Directors – made up of Democratic legislative leaders from across the country – voted to admit Tennessee’s Mike Turner as our newest board member.

Representing the 51st State House District (based in Davidson County) since 2000, Rep. Turner is the Caucus Chairman of the Tennessee House Democrats. But his commitment to public service extends far beyond the halls of the capitol. Rep. Turner is also an active member of his family’s church, three local chambers of commerce, and the professional associations representing Nashville firefighters and Tennessee state employees – along with many other community organizations he remains involved with.

Rep. Turner also serves as a local fire captain, and in that capacity he personally participated in the rescue of Nashville residents stranded in the devastating flooding earlier this year. The Tennessee House of Representatives honored his actions with a resolution of praise shortly thereafter, and a local news crew captured images of Rep. Turner wading through neck-deep floodwaters in order to bring residents to safer ground:

Finally, as a Democratic leader in one of the Democratic Party’s most important redistricting priority states this year (both legislative chambers are within just a few seats of returning to Democratic control), Rep. Turner’s guidance and expertise will prove invaluable as the 2010 campaign heats up.

Rep. Turner, welcome to the DLCC.

In an historic and unanimous vote yesterday afternoon, New Jersey Democrats chose Sheila Oliver as the first African-American woman ever to serve as the state’s Assembly Speaker.

After the vote, Democratic legislators expressed confidence that Oliver and incoming Majority Leader Joseph Cryan will provide effective leadership in their new roles:

"(Oliver) was very soulful," Assemblyman John McKeon (D-Essex) said. "Joe (Cryan) is very practical. I think they'll be a great team."

Assemblyman Wayne DeAngelo (D-Mercer) said Oliver will be an effective speaker despite her relative inexperience in the Legislature.

"Her ability to put people together is one of her strong assets," he said. "And she has the support of all of us."

Oliver will lead a chamber where Democrats hold a dominant, 47-33 majority after successfully defending all but one of their Assembly seats earlier this November. Her Democratic counterpart in the State Senate will be incoming Senate President Joseph Sweeney, who was also chosen yesterday afternoon.

Libby Mitchell first ran for the Maine Legislature in 1974. Eventually, she became Speaker of the House. She ultimately served nine terms in the lower chamber before moving to the Senate, and in December, she became Senate President.

Sen. Mitchell is the first woman in the history of the United States to have held both positions.

She recently gave a long interview with Maine Insight, where she talked about her career in politics and her policy goals for the state:

Libby is a woman of many talents, having been a teacher, the director of Maine State Housing, holding a law degree and blazing the trail for women in Maine. Her tremendous sense of humor has defused situations, helping bipartisan cooperation, and her steadfast focus on education continues to motivate her.

For her entire career as an elected official, Sen. Mitchell has been focused on improving education -- in particular working to expand scholarship opportunities.

In the short term, she is working to fill Maine's $140 million budget shortfall.

As lawmakers convene to choose new leadership in the wake of the 2008 election, we plan to profile many of the new Democratic Speakers and Majority Leaders.

Before last week, this country had never seen a legislature where the presiding officers of both chambers were African Americans.

That changed when Democrats in the Colorado General Assembly elected State Representative Terrance Carroll to serve as Speaker of the House alongside reelected Senate President Peter Groff.

Carroll is a four-term state representative, as well as an attorney and an ordained minister.

He grew up in Washington DC and graduated with a bachelor of arts from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. He then moved to Colorado and earned both a law degree from University of Denver and Masters of Divinity from the Iliff School of Theology in Denver.

Carroll is also a graduate of the Summer of Leadership Institute at Harvard University Divinity School's Center for the Study of Values and Public Life and John F. Kennedy School of Government.

In the legislature, Carroll has served as the chair of the House Judiciary Committee and assistant majority leader. He is a leading advocate for education reform in the state.

The future speaker has already begun to lay out an agenda for the next legislative session that includes balancing the state budget, revitalizing the states transportation network, and reforming the school financing system.