Florida’s first congresswoman had ties to Volusia, Flagler

This election year sees both major parties in Florida nominating women for the U.S. Senate for the first time. The first woman voted in as Florida’s U.S. senator was Paula Hawkins in 1980. The first woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives was Ruth Bryan Owen in 1928. She was elected from the 4th Congressional District, which included Volusia and Flagler counties.

Read more The next MOSH: How a Jacksonville landmark is being built again

At the time, the 4th district stretched from Jacksonville all the way to Key West along the state’s east coast. A lot of ground to cover, and Owen made a point of going the entire distance in her green Ford on an aggressive 500-stop campaign, logging over 10,000 miles. Women had only been able to vote in Florida since the 1920 election, yet she was elected with 65% of the vote.

Ruth Bryan Owen was staunchly for prohibition

Owen served two terms. She was defeated for re-election in the 1932 Democratic primary. Like her father, former presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan, she was a staunch supporter of alcohol prohibition, which by the 1930s was an unpopular position. Her opponent, J. Mark Wilcox, ran on prohibition repeal, making this a dry-versus-wet primary. Wilcox won by a two-to-one margin.

In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed her minister to Denmark. She died in 1954.

Read more Games-From dressing as a man to competing with the elite, no backpedalling for Afghan Hashimi

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Florida’s first congresswoman had ties to Volusia, Flagler

Reporting by Mark Lane, Special to The News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal

Read more Manatee students selected for All-County Orchestra

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect

This story was originally published September 20, 2026 at 5:06 AM.