U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler made a big personal announcement Wednesday morning: She and her husband are expecting their first child.
The 34-year-old Camas Republican is due at the beginning of October.
“This fall, there will be yet another person in Southwest Washington who will — for their entire adult life — get to explain: ‘No, no, it’s pronounced Butler,’ ” Herrera Beutler wrote on her official Facebook page. “That’s right — we’re expecting a baby!”
In the months to follow, Herrera Beutler will field advice from her female colleagues on how much time off she should take around her due date, said her spokesman, Casey Bowman.
“She plans to work as long as she is able and come back as soon as it’s practical,” Bowman said by email. “She’s talking with other members of Congress who have been able to successfully balance their young families with their congressional duties and is learning as much as she can from them about what works and what doesn’t.”
Herrera Beutler and her husband, Daniel Beutler, married in August 2009. They live in Camas. His parents live in Salem, Ore., and her parents live in Camas.
“I am thankful for the close proximity to both sets of grandparents because like any new parents, I’m sure we’ll need the help!” Herrera Beutler wrote in her Facebook announcement.
She said she doesn’t yet know the sex of the baby.
Herrera Beutler was elected to her second term in Congress last fall. She is the fourth woman to serve Washington’s 3rd Congressional District, and she is the first of those women to have a child while serving in Congress.
Democrat Julia Butler Hansen gave birth to a son before she was elected to Congress in 1960. Butler Hansen had that son in 1946, while she was a Washington state legislator.
Democrat Jolene Unsoeld, elected to the 3rd District seat in 1988, had four children before serving in Congress. Republican Linda Smith, who succeeded Unsoeld in 1995, had two children before serving in Congress.
