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Articles by

Barbara Rodriguez

Interim Health and Caregiving Reporter

I’m Barbara Rodriguez, The 19th’s interim health and caregiving reporter. I’ve covered politics for several years, first as a statehouse reporter for The Associated Press and then as a politics reporter for The Des Moines Register. In 2019, I was assigned to cover the presidential campaigns of then-California Sen. Kamala Harris and Pete Buttigieg, then mayor of South Bend, Indiana. Immediately after the 2020 Iowa caucuses, I jumped into the health care beat, where a global virus was beginning to appear in Iowa and beyond.

I joined The 19th a few months later in 2020 to cover statehouses, a role that allowed me to write about the women and queer people making policy outside of the halls of Congress. In 2022, I switched to writing about voting, with an eye still on state-level politics. My background as a generalist reporter allows me to jump into reporting on anything as needed in our newsroom.

I’m interested in writing about the barriers that people face in accessing the ballot, and what it says about true representative democracy. I’m always on the lookout for people-centered stories to highlight policy debates.

My work is free to consume and free to republish because of contributions from readers like you. A donation of $19 goes a long way toward sustaining our nonprofit newsroom.

Latest from Barbara Rodriguez

Republican state lawmakers want to punish schools that teach the 1619 Project

Lawmakers in at least five states have introduced legislation that threatens to cut funding to schools that share curriculum about the award-winning project.

Barbara Rodriguez · February 7, 2021
A wave of anti-trans bills are hitting statehouses

Experts say that though passing anti-LGBTQ+ bills is a losing battle, some could end up before the Supreme Court.

Kate Sosin, Barbara Rodriguez · February 4, 2021
Women outnumber men in the Nevada legislature. What difference does it make?

Nevada has the only legislature with more women than men in both chambers. Some academics are studying what that representation means.

Barbara Rodriguez · January 31, 2021
State legislatures in 2021: What to expect on trans rights, abortion rights, voting rights and more

Republicans expanded their statehouse majorities in the 2020 election. We’re looking at major issues they’re considering now.

Barbara Rodriguez · January 27, 2021
With Democrats’ new power in Congress, Nancy Pelosi prepares to pass voting rights legislation

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has indicated that she will push for at least one voting rights bill. Some voting experts say new legislation is needed following a contentious general election.

Barbara Rodriguez · January 17, 2021
‘Just because Trump goes away doesn't mean that extremism goes away’: Massachusetts AG Maura Healey talks about threats following Capitol attack

The attorney general of Massachusetts is among the law enforcement officials preparing for potential violence at state capitals and other sites following a deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Barbara Rodriguez · January 15, 2021
Women hold unprecedented power in Vermont's statehouse. This is how they'll lead.

Women hold the three top positions in Vermont’s legislature. With them they bring an understanding that to focus on economic recovery means to focus on caregiving.

Barbara Rodriguez · January 15, 2021
Members of Congress test positive for COVID-19 in wake of Capitol attack and lockdown

Two other Democratic lawmakers introduced a bill to fine their colleagues who refuse to wear a mask on Capitol grounds during the pandemic.

Barbara Rodriguez · January 12, 2021
Kim Janey will become Boston’s first Black and woman mayor

Janey is expected to join a small group of Black women who lead the nation’s largest cities.

Barbara Rodriguez · January 8, 2021
Pelosi calls on Pence to remove Trump from office

The Speaker of the House said that Congress was prepared to act if the Vice President or the Cabinet did not.

Barbara Rodriguez · January 7, 2021

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Articles by

Barbara Rodriguez

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