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Kweisi Mfume to seek congressional seat vacated by death of Elijah Cummings Kweisi Mfume to seek congressional seat vacated by death of Elijah Cummings
(about 2 hours later)
Former NAACP chief and U.S. lawmaker Kweisi Mfume said Monday that he will run for the Maryland congressional seat that he held for a decade and was most recently held by his friend, the late congressman Elijah E. Cummings. Former NAACP chief and U.S. lawmaker Kweisi Mfume said Monday that he will run for the congressional seat most recently held by his friend Elijah E. Cummings, who died last month.
Considered an elder statesman in Baltimore politics, Mfume, 71, occupied the 7th district seat from 1987 to 1996, when he stepped aside to lead the NAACP. Cummings, who died Oct. 17, succeeded him in Congress. Considered an elder statesman in Baltimore politics, Mfume, 71, occupied Maryland’s 7th District seat from 1987 to 1996, when he stepped aside to lead the NAACP. Cummings (D) then ran for the seat and won.
Mfume’s up-from-the-streets story is well known in the district. He dropped out of high school and got involved with crime after his mother, who raised him, died of cancer. Inspired by her memory, he says, he returned to school, earning degrees from Morgan State University and Johns Hopkins University, and dedicated his life to civil rights and public service. Mfume’s up-from-the-streets story is well known in the district, which includes parts of Baltimore City as well as Baltimore and Howard counties.
Mfume says he and Cummings met in the late 1970s, when Mfume was an activist and radio commentator. They and hit it off immeditely, despite campaigning for opposing political factions, and remained close friends until Cummings’s death. He dropped out of high school, was a teenage father and turned to crime after his mother, who raised him in poverty, died of cancer in his arms when he was 16.
“Today, we are here without Elijah,” Mfume said Monday, announcing his candidacy before a crowd of supporters at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum in downtown Baltimore. “I honestly believe that I’ve got to find a way to make sure what he and so many others fought for is not lost, tossed to the side or forgotten ... If I were not ready to go to work on Day 1, I would not be here.” Inspired by her memory, he says, he returned to school, earning degrees from Morgan State University and later Johns Hopkins University, and dedicated his life to civil rights and public service.
Mfume was elected to Baltimore City Council at age 31, winning by three votes. He led the council’s committee on health policy and worked to diversity city government and divest city funds from apartheid government of South Africa. Mfume has said he and Cummings met in the late 1970s, when Mfume was an activist and radio commentator, and hit it off immediately, despite campaigning for opposing political factions. They remained close friends until Cummings’s death.
He won the seat of retiring congressman Parren Mitchell in 1986, and served for about a decade, including a stint as chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. “Today, we are here without Elijah,” Mfume said, announcing his candidacy at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture in downtown Baltimore. “I honestly believe that I’ve got to find a way to make sure that all he and others fought for is not lost, tossed to the side or forgotten.”
Mfume successfully co-sponsored and helped to pass the Americans with Disabilities Act, strengthened the Equal Credit Opportunity Law and co-authored and successfully amended the Civil Rights Bill of 1991 to apply its provisions to U.S. citizens working for American-based companies abroad. He also sponsored legislative initiatives banning assault weapons, which later expired, and establishing stalking as a federal crime. Mfume attempted a comeback in 2005, when he sought the Senate seat being vacated by Paul Sarbanes. He narrowly lost the Democratic nomination to Ben Cardin. Mfume was surrounded by his wife, sons and grandchildren and the pastor of his church, New Shiloh Baptist. Larry Gibson, a political consultant and law professor who mentored Cummings and Mfume, spoke on his behalf.
Mfume is the second well-known Democrat to announce plans to run in the deep-blue district, following Del. Talmadge Branch (D-Baltimore City), the majority whip in the Maryland House of Delegates. Cummings’s widow, Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, who chairs the Maryland Democratic Party, said last week that she is seriously considering entering the race as well, as are a host of other Democrats. Mfume was elected to the Baltimore City Council at age 31, winning by three votes. He succeeded retiring congressman Parren Mitchell in 1987 and served on Capitol Hill for about a decade, including a stint as chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus.
The filing deadline is Nov. 20. A special primary election will be held Feb. 4, and the special general election will be held April 28, the same day voters will head to polls to nominate candidates for the 2020 election. At the NAACP, he was credited with restoring the financial stability of the organization and raising its profile. But he faced accusations of favoritism and romantic relationships with employees.
The district includes parts of Baltimore City as well as Baltimore and Howard counties. On Monday, Mfume told reporters he, a single man at the time, dated a single woman who also worked at the NAACP. He called it a “boneheaded mistake.”
At funeral for Cummings: ‘It now falls on us to continue his work’ Mfume narrowly lost the 2006 Democratic Senate primary to Ben Cardin.
‘His voice could shake mountains’: Cummings lies in state at the U.S. Capitol Cummings’s widow, Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, who chairs the Maryland Democratic Party, said last week that she is seriously considering entering the race as well, as are a host of other Democrats.
Obituary: Elijah E. Cummings, lawmaker and civil rights leader, dies at 68 The filing deadline is Nov. 20. A special primary election will be held Feb. 4, and the special general election will be held April 28, the same day of the 2020 primary.
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