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For the 1st time, 2 women are seated behind the president during a State of the Union

By Heidi Glenn
Published March 2, 2022 at 6:45 AM EST

History was made at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday night.

For the first time, two women were seated on the platform behind the president during a State of the Union address.

Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sat behind Biden during his joint address to Congress last year, but that speech was not an official State of the Union address.

They flanked the president tonight for his first official State of the Union speech.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

President Joe Biden addresses a joint session of Congress, Wednesday, April 28, 2021, in the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, as Vice President Kamala Harris, left, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., look on.
Chip Somodevilla / AP
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AP
President Joe Biden addresses a joint session of Congress, Wednesday, April 28, 2021, in the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, as Vice President Kamala Harris, left, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., look on.
Politics
Heidi Glenn
Heidi Glenn has been the Washington Desk’s digital editor since 2022, and at NPR since 2007, when she was hired as the National Desk’s digital producer. In between she has served as Morning Edition’s lead digital editor, helping the show’s audio stories find life online.
See stories by Heidi Glenn