Senator Jeff Merkley comes from a family of fighters. According to family lore, his grandmother lived for a time in a boxcar during the Great Depression. Jeff’s mother stretched a dollar as far as anyone possibly could, and his father overcame a serious illness and went on to work in a lumber mill and become a union machinist. Life wasn’t glamorous, but together, Jeff’s parents saved enough to buy a modest home, take their children on annual camping vacations, and retire comfortably after a lifetime of contributing to their community.
Jeff is committed to protecting the health, rights, and liberties of all women. Throughout his career, Jeff has fought for equal pay, working to restore the balance of power between workers and employees by providing legal protections to women who face pay discrimination. He believes that millions of hardworking American women should have the ability to properly care for themselves and their families, without worrying about their economic security. Jeff also led the successful fight that created the first set of national rights for new mothers who want to continue to breastfeed after returning to work, and he continues to push to expand those rights.
Jeff has fought to protect a woman’s constitutional right to the full scope of comprehensive reproductive health care, including abortion, and will continue to stand up against efforts that would allow the government to make personal health care decisions for a woman and her family. He has worked to create a society that is safe for women—one that is free of violence and harassment—and continues to speak out against those who use their positions of power to victimize individuals and silence women.