A record number of Black candidates ran for seats in Congress this week, hoping to increase representation in a predominately white legislature. But only a fraction of Black candidates won their races on Nov. 8. One possible explanation: gerrymandering. In Florida, incumbent Rep. Al Lawson, a Democrat who served in Congress since 2017, lost his […]
Politics & Policy
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
Why So Many Black Candidates Struggled in the Midterm Elections
Several Black candidates made history on election night: Democrat Wes Moore became Maryland’s first Black governor. Maxwell Frost, a 25-year-old progressive activist, won his bid to become the youngest member of Congress. And in Pennsylvania, voters elected their first Black U.S. representative, Democrat Summer Lee. But for many more — particularly those whose names topped […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
Black Voters Turn Out to Polls Despite Election Day Confusion
Black voters were at the center of legal disputes and polling-site confusion on Election Day, as voting rights advocates responded to allegations of intimidation at the polls and Republican interference in ballot counts. In Philadelphia, election officials made a last-minute change to the ballot-count process on Tuesday that could delay the vote tally for days, […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
The Black Candidates to Watch on Election Day
The Nov. 8 elections have the potential to be historic, as a record number of candidates are running to become the first Black woman or Black man to hold their office. With diverse faces on ballots nationwide — from governorships to school board races — Tuesday’s midterms could increase Black political power across layers of […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
Voter Suppression Efforts Still Loom as Millions Turn Out for Midterms
In the lead-up to Election Day, incidents of voter intimidation and efforts to manipulate the vote count have been reported across the country. In Arizona, far-right groups and armed people have been spotted at ballot drop boxes. In California, residents have reported Republican door-knockers grilling them about their voting practices. And in Maryland, a Republican […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voting
Will Voter Fraud Arrests Dampen Turnout for the Midterm Elections?
Even while he was caught up in street life on the South Side of Chicago, Aaron Smith knew he had a civic duty. The college graduate was misusing his business education to hustle heroin, but come election time, he would be filling out his ballot from top to bottom. “Local governments are really what’s going […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Five States Are Voting Whether to Outlaw Slavery (Yep, You Read That Right)
Update: Four states — Alabama, Tennessee, Oregon and Vermont — voted Nov. 8 to amend their constitution to close the “slavery loophole,” an exception clause that legalized the treatment of convicted individuals like slaves. Polling showed the measure failed in Louisiana, but the results were expected by voting rights activists, who were concerned that the […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Why the LA City Council Scandal Is About More Than Racist Slurs
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced Wednesday that his office will investigate the Los Angeles City Council’s redistricting process following the release of an audio recording in which council members hurled racist insults about Black, Jewish, and Mexican indigenous communities. On Wednesday, City Council President Nury Martinez resigned her seat, three days after the release […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voices of Change
Meet the Activist Who Is Starting a War Against Climate Disinformation
Ahead of the 2022 midterms, Capital B is talking to newsmakers across the country who want to reshape American politics or galvanize Black voices in government. Our “Voices of Change” series will update periodically with insights from the candidates, activists, lawmakers, and political insiders whom you should know. Voting apathy is real for America’s youngest […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Officials Withheld Funds Over an Abortion Ban. Black Louisianans Are Most At Risk.
Sitting in the Louisiana Senate chambers last week, Democratic Sen. Jimmy Harris received a text alert: A brewing storm heading toward his New Orleans district had prompted a flood advisory. Moments later, the state’s all-male bond commission voted 7-6 to temporarily block a $39 million loan that New Orleans planned to use for a power […]