Independent Women’s Forum is pleased to announce that Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who represents Iowa’s 1st district, is the latest entry in our popular series of Champion Women profiles.
You probably remember Rep. Miller-Meeks’ headline-grabbing arrival in Washington, D.C. in 2021. Miller-Meeks had won by six votes, one of the narrowest victories in American history. Her opponent challenged the results and then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi graciously threatened to expel Miller-Meeks.
In the end, Rep. Miller-Meeks prevailed and went on to be re-elected last year. She showed what she was made of during her period in electoral limbo as the nation held its breath. She recalls that she “remained upbeat and pleasant. And so, people would stop me in the hallways and ask me why I was so upbeat."
“Was it stressful? Certainly. It was stressful for me and my family. But whether I was in Congress for one day or 365 days, I was going to work for the district, and that’s what I did. All that time, I was working to pass bills.”
That’s pure Miller-Meeks. The woman has fortitude and is committed to conservative principles. Before running for office, she served 24 years in the military. She has been a private, nurse, and doctor (ophthalmologist for eye diseases/surgery).
Her ambition to be a doctor grew out of a near tragedy when she was severely burned in a kitchen grease fire as a teenager. She was the daughter of an Air Force master sergeant and a mother who held a number of jobs when the grease fire in the kitchen happened.
“It was a very long hospitalization and [my brother and I] were in isolation,” she recalls. “The treatment for burns is very painful. They were very fearful for our lives. But our physical therapist was so kind, and I knew that the treatments, painful as they were, were helping us. I wanted to help people like she helped people. So, when I got out of the hospital, and my parents brought me in the house, I told them I was going to be a doctor.”
Miller-Meeks left home at 16, got a job to start saving for medical school, and started at San Antonio Community College. She enlisted in the Army and ultimately retired after 24 years as a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserve. Since her nail-biter advent on the national stage, she has worked for better healthcare laws, supported the Second Amendment, and become an important voice in the GOP caucus.
Miller-Meeks is married to Curt Meeks, who was an Army nurse when the couple met. They have two children.
We know you’ll enjoy meeting a Congresswoman who was serene during the maelstrom she encountered upon arrival and has since proven herself an able legislator.
