Lucas is both the first woman and first African American to serve as president pro tempore of the Virginia Senate. AD“Because of your work, we are closer than we ever have been to that equal future,” Carol Jenkins of the ERA Coalition told Virginia lawmakers Monday morning. ERA supporters now say that provision was unconstitutional because it was not included in the amendment text. ERA supporters say there is no provision for rescissions in the Constitution and that therefore they do not count. But the Justice Department this month issued a finding that the amendment had expired and could no longer be ratified.

Source: Washington Post January 27, 2020 20:23 UTC