Wilmington, Del. — At last week’s Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Annual Legislative Conference, Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester brought together Senator Laphonza Butler (CA) and County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (MD) for a panel discussion. “Black Women Belong… in the Senate,” moderated by strategist and commentator Angela Rye, addressed the leadership of Senator Butler, and the possibility of Blunt Rochester and Alsobrooks serving in the Senate together.
Read more coverage of the panel below and watch the full conversation here.
Read — In Senate, Democrats Hope 2024 Will Be the Year of the Black Woman from The New York Times
- “For the first time, there’s a potential to have not just one at a time but two — double the number!” said Ms. Blunt Rochester, a close ally of President Biden’s who in 2020 helped run the vetting process to choose Ms. Harris as his running mate. She noted that she had started calling Ms. Alsobrooks her “sister senator-to-be.”
“To know that you’re going to be in a place and belong in a place with someone who has shared values and expectations and lived experiences,” Ms. Blunt Rochester said, was invaluable.
She added: “We even both have children named Alex.”
In the final sprint to Election Day, with control of the House, Senate and White House teetering on narrow margins, the convention center ballroom on Friday was a respite of calm in a breakneck and noxious election cycle that has for the first time elevated a Black woman to be her party’s nominee.
Read — Senate Nears Historic First of Two Black Women Serving Together from Bloomberg
- Out of more than 2,000 senators in history, just three have been Black women. The 119th Congress that convenes next January may be the first to have two serving in the Senate at the same time.
“We deserve to be in these places and these spaces,” four-term Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), the first Black person and woman to represent her state in Congress, said Friday at a panel discussion in Washington during the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s annual legislative conference.
Read — Women looking to make Senate history ‘intend to be quite bold’ from Roll Call
- At a panel discussion Friday moderated by political commentator Angela Rye at the Congressional Black Caucus’ Annual Legislative Conference, Alsobrooks, Butler and Blunt Rochester spoke about the importance of having Black women in the Senate, and in politics.
“We are a part of this country. We helped build this country. We deserve to be in these places, in these spaces,” Blunt Rochester said.
Read — Lawmakers, candidates discuss diversifying the U.S. Senate during CBC conferencefrom the AFRO
- “Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester asked me to moderate this panel and it felt spiritual from the beginning,” said Rye. “When we think about what we’ve done to facilitate opportunities and spaces for people of color, it’s clear that whenever we come and we open up the door other folks come in with us.”
Read — 2 Black women ying for seats in the US Senate from Rolling Out
- [Blunt Rochester’s] campaign focuses on various critical issues, including support for seniors, environmental protection, small businesses and women’s reproductive rights. Blunt Rochester has made history as the first woman and person of color to represent Delaware in Congress, and she aims to continue making a difference in the lives of her constituents.
Read — Angela Alsobrooks And Lisa Blunt Rochester Could Be The 1st Black Women To Serve The U.S. Senate Simultaneously from Black Enterprise
- “There isn’t a cookie-cutter way to run,” Blunt Rochester said about the bid for office. She said her goal goes beyond making history, “but to make a difference, an impact, on people’s lives.” As previously mentioned by BLACK ENTERPRISE, the Democrat, who made history as the first woman and person of color to represent Delaware in Congress, planned to campaign aggressively as she’s been a representative for seniors, the environment, small businesses, and women’s reproductive rights.