By: Joan Vennochi

When she won election in 2007, Niki Tsongas was the first woman in 25 years to represent Massachusetts in Congress. But the bigger news was how she was claiming the seat once held by her late husband, US Senator Paul Tsongas.

Over the next 11 years, Niki Tsongas staked out her own turf – most notably, a crusade against sexual assault in the military. Now, as she retires from Congress, her tenure showcases the value of hard work and commitment to common ground. But it's also the story of a woman who launched and managed her own second act.

Being known as the wife of Paul Tsongas was a benefit as far as name recognition, but also a burden, as far as proving she was worthy in her own right. Not that she would put it that way. When she reflects on her time in office, her husband's legacy is key to that experience. "I had learned from Paul, and saw over and over again, you don't arrive as a member of Congress once elected," said Tsongas. "You've earned the right to become one. There's a big ‘becoming' that has to take place."

And with Niki Tsongas, that's what happened. She earned the right to represent the voters of her district. Tsongas served on the House Armed Services Committee, a position she sought when first elected. Growing up in a military family, she had a personal interest in military-related matters. After a woman at a lunch for Wounded Warriors told Tsongas she feared her own soldiers more than the enemy, Tsongas took up what became her signature issue: fighting military sexual assault. With allies like US Representative Michael Turner, a Republican from Ohio, Tsongas was eventually able to win passage of one law that expands the legal rights of service members who have been victims of sexual assault and of another law that ensures that sexual assault victims have access to their own attorney.

Tsongas has also traveled to Afghanistan six times and, working with Republican women in Congress, has pushed for more equality for women in that country. Asked about America's continued presence there, she said, "I think we have to find a way to bring the parties to the table. . . . That war-torn country needs to find a way forward." She believes, or at least hopes, that the US presence "did make a difference for the women of Afghanistan."

Tsongas, 72, is exiting as Democrats take control of the House. Nancy Pelosi has her full support for another term as House speaker. "I know she will be prepared from day one to take advantage of being in the majority," said Tsongas.

When she first ran for office, Tsongas said, "Women can't win if women don't run." Now, she's happy to point out that the number of women in the Massachusetts delegation stands at four: Senator Elizabeth Warren and US Representatives Katherine Clark, Ayanna Pressley, and Lori Trahan, Tsongas' successor.

On her last day in her Capitol Hill office, Tsongas said she did something she had never done before. She climbed over the windowsill and onto the outdoor deck that circles the top floor of the Longworth House Office Building, and looked out at the US Capitol. Even after all those years in Washington, the new vantage point thrilled her, she said.

While she has "no regrets" about leaving, her exit from Washington feels like the closing of a circle. It began with her husband's election, first to the House in 1974, and then to the Senate in 1978. After a cancer diagnosis, Paul Tsongas didn't seek election in 1984, but ran for president in 1992. After being part of all his campaigns, Niki Tsongas launched her own. Now, she's leaving her own Washington career behind and returning to Lowell.

Her only plan is "to watch the snow falling on the trees outside my window" – at least for now.