* In 1991 Smeal was awarded an honorary Doctor of Law degree by Duke University.
* In December 2001, Smeal struck a deal that made the Feminist Majority Foundation the sole publisher of Ms. magazine.
* In 2004, Smeal supported Democrat presidential candidate John Kerry and was a signatory to a “Pledge of Action to Stop a Stolen Election.” “I remember the stolen presidential election of 2000,” said the pledge, “and I am willing to take action [by protesting] in 2004 if the election is stolen again.” Other signers included Medea Benjamin, Julian Bond, Leslie Cagan, John Cavanagh, Barbara Ehrenreich, Lisa Fithian, Jesse Jackson, Van Jones, James Lawson, Michael Lerner, Barbara Lubin, Robert McChesney, Michael Moore,Gloria Steinem, and Howard Zinn. This “Pledge” campaign was a joint project of Code Pink, Global Exchange, The Liberty Tree Foundation, and United for Peace & Justice for the Democratic Revolution.
* In an effort to derail legislative measures aimed at placing some restrictions on women’s access to abortion, Smeal in October 2006 helped put together a Ms. magazine cover story — titled “We Had Abortions” — which listed the names of thousands of women who had terminated a pregnancy at some point in their lives. “Women who have had abortions are standing up and taking the debate out of the hands of the politicians,” said Smeal. “The time for slogans and rhetoric is over.” The petition, whose most notable signer was feminist Gloria Steinem, was forwarded to Congress, the White House, and state legislatures.
* Smeal was featured in the “Pioneer Feminists Project” that the Veteran Feminists of America (VFA) launched in 2006. Dedicated to documenting “the contributions of early Second Wave feminists active in 1975 or earlier,” this work, said VFA, featured those feminists’ “first-hand account[s] of what [they] did, where and when, for reference and research by historians, teachers, journalists, librarians, ourselves …” Some of the photos which were displayed in this project showed activists holding signs that read: (a) “Housewives Are Unpaid Slaves”; (b) “Oppressed Women: Don’t Cook a Dinner! Starve a Rat Today!”; and (c) “End Human Sacrifice! Don’t Get Married! Washing Diapers Is Not Fulfilling.” Also featured in the campaign was Gloria Steinem, co-founder of the Ms. Foundation for Women.
* Over the years, Smeal has given money to the campaigns of a number of political candidates, all Democrats. Most prominent among the donees are Tammy Baldwin, Barbara Boxer, Carol Moseley Braun, Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy, Carolyn Maloney, and Barack Obama. She has also contributed to the Committee for a Democratic Future, the DNC Services Corporation, EMILY’s List, and Voters for Choice/Friends of Family Planning.