Will County area members of Congress sworn in for new term

Members of Congress from the Will County area were sworn in for the new session Sunday and shared their priorities for the next two years.

The 117th Congress convened Sunday with its newest members including U.S. Rep. Marie Newman, D-La Grange, who represents the 3rd Congressional District which includes parts of Crest Hill, Homer Glen, Lockport and Romeoville.

“The 117th Congress has more women — and more women of color — than any time in American history,” Newman said in a statement. “I couldn’t be prouder to be among this inspiring group of colleagues, each of us are only going to continue making history from here.”

Newman will serve on the House Committee on Transportation and House Democratic Manufacturing Working Group. She is also part of the Democratic Women’s Caucus, Labor Caucus and Progressive Caucus.

U.S. Rep. Bill Foster, D-Naperville, was also sworn in for another term representing the 11th Congressional District, which includes parts of Bolingbrook, Joliet, New Lenox, Plainfield and Shorewood.

Foster said he looks forward to the beginning of a Biden administration that “believes in science-driven policies.”

“It’s time to turn the page on the incompetence that has defined the outgoing President’s response to the pandemic from the beginning of this crisis,” he said in a statement.

Foster added that Congress must do more to help Americans “mitigate the economic consequences of the past year.”

U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Channahon, represents the 16th District, which includes parts of the southwestern portion of Will County. He also won reelection last year.

Kinzinger said there are areas the Congress can find bipartisan agreement on this term, including defending against aggression from China, responding to the alleged hack from Russia, defeating the COVID-19 pandemic, restoring the economy and restoring “our dialogue.”

U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville, was also sworn in after winning reelection to represent the 14th District, which includes portions of Plainfield, Minooka and Shorewood.

She also emphasized her desire to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on her district in the new term.

“In the new Congress, I will continue to bring the voices and the values of our community to Congress and deliver the urgently-needed resources that will help usher a recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and bring us back stronger than ever,” Underwood said in a statement. “The next two years will bring no shortage of challenges, but I’m ready to get to work.”