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National
Record Number of Black Candidates Seek History- Making Results During Midterm Elections
Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer
While some already are household names like Stacey Abrams in Georgia, Val Demings in Florida, and Anthony Brown in Maryland, others including Natalie James in Arkansas, Will Boyd in Alabama, and Stephanie Thomas in Connecticut, are upstarts. Flowers has run a relentless campaign for governor against GOP incumbent Gov. Kay Ivey.
Flowers already counts as the first Black woman to win a major party nomination for governor in Alabama.
A Nov. 8 victory would make her the first Black woman governor in the Cotton State.
Meanwhile, Democrat Will Boyd is seeking the U.S. Senate seat out of Alabama, making him the first Black person in state history to hold that office. Boyd faces off against Republican Katie Britt.
In California, Republican Angela Jacobs seeks to unseat Eleni Kounalakis as the state’s lieutenant governor. Jacobs would be the first Black woman to hold that office.
In Connecticut, Democrat Stephanie Thomas faces off against Republican Dominic Rapini in the race for secretary of state. Thomas would be the first Black woman to hold that seat.
In Florida, Democratic Rep. Val Demings faces Republican Marco Rubio in the race for U.S. Senate. With a victory, Demings, Orlando’s first woman police chief, would be the
All are among the approximately two dozen Black candidates seeking public office.
In some cases, a victory would make the individual the first African American to hold the top elected office in their state.
Here’s a breakdown of the candidates and the offices they’re running for in each state.
Democrat Natalie James seeks to unseat Republican John Boozman in the U.S. Senate race out of Arkansas. If elected, James would become the first Black Congress member from Arkansas. The so-called “Natural State” also would house its first Black governor if Democrat Chris Jones defeats Republican Sarah Sanders, the former White House Press Secretary under Donald Trump.
In Alabama, Democrat Yolanda
5 Democrat Yolanda Flowers campaigns for Alabama governor.(Courtesy photo)
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How to Prepare for Leaf Vacuum Collection:
• Check the DPW website to confirm your area’s leaf collection dates;
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For more information, please visit dpw.dc.gov/service/leaf-collection.
5 HHS has unveiled new ads to help push Covid-19 vaccines in BIPOC communities/NNPA
Biden Administration Unveils COVID-19 Vaccine Push in Multicultural Communities
HHS Hosts First Multicultural Press Briefing on BIPOCXchange
Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer
Following President Joe Biden’s announcement of additional efforts to get Americans updated COVID-19 vaccine ahead of the holidays, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) presented a multicultural media briefing that included leaders of the Black Press of America, the National Association of Hispanic Publications, and other minority press.
The briefing took place on the BIPOCXChange, a metaverse solution created by the Multicultural Media & Correspondents Association, a media advocacy organization that seeks to help Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) media increase ownership and control.
The President announced that more than 20 million Americans, including nearly one in five seniors, have already received updated COVID-19 vaccines.
The White House noted that while COVID-19 no longer counts as the disruptive force it previously was, the virus continues to evolve.
Health officials said COVID-19, flu, and other respiratory illnesses spread more quickly in the winter as people gather indoors. As the weather gets colder, Americans must take action to stay protected.
“We have made extraordinary progress in the past two and a half years, and now, we have more tools than ever to help us make it through this pandemic,” U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said during the briefing.
“From the beginning, we made equity the centerpiece of our approach to COVID-19, and we want people to continue to benefit from the life-saving vaccines and treatments,” Murthy stated.
He said the updated vaccine is specifically tailored to the dominant variant of COVID that’s currently circulating.
“Now, and as we enter into the winter, we are at an important moment to sustain the progress we have made by making sure people utilize these life-saving tools and get vaccinated,” Murthy asserted.
Dr. Cameron Webb, the senior advisor to the White House COVID-19 Response Team, implored the BIPOC community that “we know that we can do this.”
“We know there is a path to making sure equity is centered in the vaccina-
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tion effort. And it starts with respecting and acknowledging the people from the community really are going to be the key to our success,” Webb insisted.
“We are excited about the progress we’ve made, but we’re more committed to the progress we will continue to make because the job is not done. And there’s still a lot at stake this fall as we move forward.”
During the briefing, HHS announced a new COVID-19 Public Education campaign called “We Can Do This.”
The slogan, translated into Spanish,
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