When Senator Nancy Kassebaum delivered Washington’s Farewell Address on February 16, 1981, the Kansas Republican was one of only two women serving in the United States Senate, and only the 14th female senator in the institution’s history. The daughter of Alfred M. Landon, the Republican governor of Kansas who challenged Franklin Roosevelt in the 1936 presidential election, Kassebaum served three terms in the Senate. She began her service on December 3, 1978, as the first woman elected to the Senate without having previously been selected to fill an unexpired congressional term. Known for her moderate and independent nature, Kassebaum worked tirelessly on issues such as reducing the budget deficit and arms control. In her last term she chaired the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources—the second woman to chair a Senate standing committee. After her retirement in 1997, Kassebaum married former Senate majority leader Howard Baker of Tennessee.