Apps

Katherine Clark — news, coverage & facts — IJR

Massachusetts Senate (2011–2013)

When Tisei resigned from the state senate to run for lieutenant governor of Massachusetts, Clark ran for his seat. In the Democratic primary, she defeated Stoneham attorney Michael S. Day, 64%–36%. In the November 2010 general election, she defeated Republican Craig Spadafora, 52%–48%.

Clark was sworn in on January 5, 2011. She supports abortion rights and has been endorsed in her campaigns by NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts and the Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund.

In 2011, Clark was co-chair of the Joint Committee on Public Service, where she was lead author of the Senate version of a bill to reform municipal pensions. For her work in 2011, she received legislator of the year awards from the Massachusetts Municipal Association and the Massachusetts Police Association. In 2012, she authored a law that takes steps to ensure that all Massachusetts students read at grade level by third grade. Also in 2012, her bill extending restraining orders in domestic violence cases to cover victims' pets, which are often used as pawns in abusive relationships, was signed as part of a larger law on animal shelters. In 2013, she co-sponsored a bill expanding the state's wiretapping authority, which was strictly limited under existing law, in order to help police better investigate violent street crime. At the same time, she co-sponsored a bill to secure electronic privacy protections, requiring police to have probable cause before investigating the electronic records of individuals. She filed another bill tightening sex offender laws, imposing stricter penalties and making offender data more accessible to agencies and the public. The Women's Bar Association of Massachusetts named Clark its 2013 Legislator of the Year for her service on women's issues.

Clark's committee assignments in the state Senate were as follows:

Judiciary (Chair)

Mental Health and Substance Abuse (Vice Chair)

Post Audit and Oversight (Vice Chair)

Public Health

Public Safety and Homeland Security

Steering and Policy (Chair)

Tenure

Clark was sworn into office on December 12, 2013, and sits on the House Appropriations Committee. In a 2014 interview with The Boston Globe, she compared life in Washington to the television series House of Cards, saying "It's exactly like here, minus the murders."

Clark was unopposed in her bid for a full term in 2014.

In March 2015, Clark decided not to attend the speech by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu before a joint session of Congress. She affirmed a commitment to maintaining and strengthening the relationship between the U.S. and Israel but noted that the invitation was offered without first consulting the Obama administration. In 2023, Clark voted to provide Israel with support following the Hamas attack on Israel.

Clark has introduced legislation in response to Internet harassment, most notably resulting from the Gamergate controversy, and has advocated for more stringent enforcement of existing laws. After introducing legislation that would criminalize "swatting" (falsely reporting an ongoing critical incident to dispatch an emergency response), she was herself targeted by a false report of an active shooter at her home.

In January 2017, Clark announced a boycott of Donald Trump's inauguration. She was part of a small group of House and Senate members who chose to boycott the ceremony. Her reason was her desire not to "normalize" Trump's promotion of "bigoted, misogynist, anti-Semitic, and racist claims."

Clark voted with President Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time, according to FiveThirtyEight analysis completed in January 2023.

During an August 2025 town hall event organized by Friends Committee on National Legislation, Clark referred to Israel's actions in Gaza as a genocide. However, she walked back this statement soon after the event, saying "I want to be clear I am not accusing Israel of genocide."

On November 28, 2018, it was announced that Clark had defeated California congressman Pete Aguilar to succeed Linda Sánchez as vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus.

On November 18, 2020, it was announced that Clark had defeated Rhode Island congressman David Cicilline by a vote of 135 to 92 to succeed Ben Ray Luján as assistant speaker, the number four spot in Democratic house leadership.

In 2021 Clark was mentioned as a possible candidate to succeed Pelosi as Speaker of the House. But after Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, and Jim Clyburn announced their retirement from party leadership in November 2022, Clark instead announced a bid for party whip, the second-highest-ranking individual in the minority party. After running unopposed, Clark was elected as the minority whip on November 30, 2022.