Nancy Pelosi, a fiery liberal mother-of-five millionaire, is on a mission.
As the soon-to-be first female Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, she is vowing to restore integrity, civility and honesty in Congress while sticking to her proudly left-wing beliefs.
The Democrats scored dramatic gains in Tuesday's U.S. mid-term elections, taking control of the House for the first time in 12 years.
As Speaker, the 66-year-old will be third in line to the presidency behind U.S. vice-president Dick Cheney.
Ms. Pelosi is variously described as fiery, aggressive and stridently liberal - traits the Republicans used to paint her as a frightening liability during the mid-term campaign.
But as the Democrats celebrated their victory on Tuesday night, Ms. Pelosi promised to work with the Republicans.
"Democrats promise to work together in a bipartisan way for all Americans," she said.
"The campaign is over. Democrats are ready to lead. We are prepared to govern. We will do so working together with the administration and the Republicans in Congress in partnership not in partisanship."
Ms. Pelosi says she has some clear, immediate goals: to raise the minimum wage; adopt the 9/11 Commission's anti-terrorism agenda; and allow Medicare to buy cheaper prescription drugs.
She leads the opposition to the Iraq war on the House floor, and has indicated she will campaign for a pullout of American troops.
She is also a passionate defender of abortion rights and has pushed hard to roll back the Bush government's tax cuts.
"From sea to shining sea, the American people voted for change. Today we have made history . . . Now let us make progress," Ms. Pelosi said Tuesday.
She is the youngest child and only daughter [after five sons]of Thomas D'Alesandro Jr., a former mayor of Baltimore, Md. Her oldest brother, Thomas, is also a former mayor of the city.
Married to investment banker Paul Pelosi - whose real estate holdings are a great chunk of the couple's $16-million (U.S.) wealth - Ms. Pelosi was first elected to the House in 1987 to represent San Francisco.
She was 47, and had spent years as a mother and Democratic Party official and fundraiser in California before the youngest of her five children entered the final year of high school and she ran for office.
In 2002, Ms. Pelosi became the first female to lead a major party in Congress when she was resoundingly elected as Democratic leader of the House, and before that she had served as party whip for a year.