Biography
Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski is a lifelong champion for working families, a Springfield resident and the proud Representative for Illinois’ 13th Congressional District.
A native of Illinois, Nikki knows that our communities thrive when the middle class is strong. But for too long, working hard and playing by the rules hasn’t been paying off like it should. She believes that families deserve better, and she’s spent her entire career fighting to help restore the American Dream for people like her grandpa, a union painter, and her grandma, a public school teacher.
That’s why she joined the labor movement, and fought to get firefighters, grocery workers and meatpackers better training, wages and workplace safety protections. It’s why she led negotiations to raise Illinois’ minimum wage to $15 an hour and chaired the Broadband Advisory Board to expand internet access to rural communities. And it’s why she helped the Biden-Harris Administration implement the American Rescue Plan and establish the Made in America Office to create jobs and strengthen our economy.
Nikki joined Congress in 2023 to build on that work. As she brings the voices of people in Central and Southern Illinois to Washington, she’s focused on putting their needs over petty politics, reaching for compromise and delivering results for the communities she serves.
Nikki graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign – a school she’s now honored to represent.
Committees
- Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities, Risk Management and Credit
- Subcommittee on Conservation, Research and Biotechnology
- Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets and Rural Development
House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
- Subcommittee on Health