Early career Bowden began her working life as a
secretary. She worked for the
National Health Service between 1979 and 1982, and for
Bristol City Council from 1982 to 1983. The all-women shortlist was controversial; it drew criticism from a number of male councillors, including the leader of
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. On
5 May 2016, she was elected a
Member of the Welsh Assembly with 9,763 votes (47.2% of votes cast). She was re-elected with a majority of 9,311 votes. After the election, she was appointed as Chief Whip for the Welsh Government and
Deputy Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism by First Minister
Mark Drakeford. She was moved from the role of Chief Whip to being a Ministerial liaison for the
co-operation agreement, in May 2023. After
Vaughan Gething was elected First Minister in May 2024, she was appointed as
Minister for Social Care. First Minister
Eluned Morgan retained her in this role when she appointed her cabinet in August 2024, but renamed it to
Minister for Children and Social Care in Morgan's September 2024 reshuffle. ==Personal life==