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From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues

Long Thompson, Jill Lynnette (b. 1952)

Democrat Jill Long Thompson of Indiana served in the U.S. House of Representatives from March 28, 1989 to January 3, 1995. After her congressional service, Long Thompson was appointed undersecretary of agriculture for rural development in President Bill Clinton’s administration.

Born in Warsaw, Indiana, Long Thompson received her BS from Valparaiso University in 1974, and a master’s degree in business administration in 1978 and a doctoral degree in 1984, both from Indiana University. Before running for Congress, she was a professor of business at both universities. From 1983 to 1986, she was a member of the Valparaiso City Council. She ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 1986 and the U.S. House of Representatives in 1988.

When the House seat was vacated in 1989, Long Thompson ran again, this time successfully. A Democrat in a strong Republican district, she found a balance between her party’s interests and those of her district. For example, she supported pro-choice legislation and increasing the minimum wage, while taking more conservative positions on some fiscal votes.

In 1990, Long Thompson gained passage of amendments to the farm bill, including one to give farmers planting flexibility and another to give incentives to farmers who used conservation techniques. She also passed measures for expanded hospice care services for terminally ill veterans and for counseling for women veterans who were sexually harassed or assaulted during their military service.

Defeated in her 1994 re-election attempt, Long Thompson became a fellow at the Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a member of the board of directors of the Commodity Credit Corporation. She served as undersecretary for development in the U.S. Department of Agriculture from 1995 to 2001. She was an unsuccessful candidate to the U.S. House of Representatives for the 108th Congress in 2002. She ran unsuccessfully for governor of Indiana in 2008.

President Barack Obama appointed Long Thompson to the Farm Credit Administration Board in 2010 and she served in that position until 2015. She is currently visiting clinical associate professor at Indiana University, Bloomington and joined The Conservation Fund’s Board of Directors in 2017.

See also: Congress, Women in; Reproductive Rights; Sexual Harassment

References: Congressional Quarterly, Politics in America 1994 (1993); “Jill Long Thompson,” http://www.fca.gov/about/board/longthompson.html (accessed July 26, 2012).

Citation Types

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Format
MLA 9th
"Long Thompson, Jill Lynnette (b. 1952)." From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, edited by Suzanne O’Dea, Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0572.
APA 7th
Long Thompson, Jill Lynnette (b. 1952). From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, In S. O’Dea (Ed.), Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0572.
CMOS 17th
"Long Thompson, Jill Lynnette (b. 1952)." From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, Edited by Suzanne O’Dea. Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0572.