Sen. Katie Britt steps into the limelight with GOP response to State of the Union

Sen. Katie Britt is set to take center stage Thursday when she delivers the Republican response to President Biden’s State of the Union address, giving her a chance to establish herself as a fresh face of a party looking to strengthen its appeal with women and young voters.

As the first woman elected to the Senate from Alabama and the youngest Republican woman ever elected to the upper chamber, Ms. Britt, 42, is a relative newcomer to the national political scene.

But she has already been billed as a “star,” according to GOP analysts, and is thought to be on former President Donald Trump’s shortlist of potential running mates.

“The generational contrast will be obvious, and she’s a good speaker, too,” GOP strategist Scott Jennings said. “What younger voters see in Sen. Britt is what they see in themselves — young family, trying to build a better future for their kids, desperate for a culture that isn’t poisoning our kids with drugs and crazy.”

Ms. Britt, who was elected in 2022, is expected to share her experiences as a daughter of small business owners, a married mother of two and a new generation conservative leader.

“As a conservative Republican Senator from Alabama, I stand ready to call out Joe Biden and the radical Democrats’ failures,” Ms. Britt said Wednesday in an email blast. “It’s time to put America First again and make the case for why Americans should vote Republican this election year.”

“There is no doubt that President Biden’s failed presidency has made America weaker and more vulnerable at every turn,” she said last week after it was announced she had been tapped to deliver the GOP response.

The opportunity is fraught with political risk. Former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal’s 2009 response was widely panned and was thought to have tarnished his national image. Others have fared better.

The State of the Union address comes a day after former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley — who delivered the 2016 GOP response to then-President Barack Obama — pulled the plug on her presidential campaign, paving the way for Mr. Trump’s nomination this summer.

Ms. Britt endorsed Mr. Trump’s 2024 campaign late last year while criticizing Mr. Biden for failing to address rising inflation, fentanyl deaths and the flow of illegal immigrants crossing over the U.S.-Mexico border.

This marks the third consecutive time Republicans have tapped a woman to deliver the rebuttal. The responsibility fell on the shoulders of Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders last year and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds in 2022.

There is a little extra buzz over Ms. Britt’s rebuttal this year, with some political analysts saying it will double as a “big audition” to be Mr. Trump’s vice presidential pick.

“It will be interesting to see if Britt rises to the occasion,” former House speaker Newt Gingrich said Sunday on “The Cats Roundtable” on WABC 770 AM. “If she does, it will be a major step up in her potentially being Trump’s vice-presidential candidate.”