Ten fresh faces to watch in new Congress

[No Elephants]

Ten fresh faces to watch in the new Congress
By Carrie Dann, NBC News

Some will become household names, and some may be doomed to a quick re-election defeat or to toil away in anonymity. But every two years, new freshmen members of Congress descend on Capitol Hill, representing the country's changing landscape with their politics and their life stories.

The new ranks will be flush with record-breakers when they arrive in Washington. The 113th Congress will welcome the first openly gay senator, the first Asian-American woman in the Senate and first bisexual member of Congress. A new Latino senator -- one of just three -- is already snagging headlines for voicing a new vision of the Republican party. A record-breaking 20 women will serve in the upper chamber, and 78 will be seated in the United States House. Sixteen new members served in the Iraq or Afghanistan wars. Four new LGBT individuals were elected, almost doubling the number of openly gay lawmakers on the Hill.


While the whims of a 24-hour news cycle can elevate any fresh face at the drop of a hat -- or the click of a tweet -- here's a first look at 10 interesting new people to watch as the 113th Congress convenes.

http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/04/15649841-ten-fresh-faces-to-watch-in-the-new-congress?lite