BATON ROUGE, La — State Representative C. Denise Marcelle and Baton Rouge activist Gary Chambers publicly endorsed Senator Karen Carter Peterson for Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District.
The Louisiana State Senator is running against Senator Troy Carter to fill former Representative Cedric Richmond's seat. Former representative Richmond vacated the role to become the Senior Advisor to President Joe Biden and Director of the Office of Public Liaison.
One of Peterson's stances is allowing women to make their choice dealing with their bodies. Rep. Marcelle agrees
"The reason I'm supporting Peterson is that she's pro-choice," she said. "I also stand with her health coalition and fight for justice reform. She's a wonderful representative in the capital. I'm excited to see her break the glass ceiling, becoming the first African American woman Louisiana sends to Congress."
Chambers admitted that the decision to endorse Peterson was not an easy one but said that he thought of what was best for Louisiana's citizens.
"I wasn't going to make an endorsement at all, but this is bigger than me," he tweeted. "I'm endorsing Karen Carter Peterson. I didn't get to this decision to endorse Karen without a lot of thought and many difficult conversations."
Chambers believes that Senator Peterson can bring the issues that are important to Louisiana citizens to Congress.
"Too often, we want leaders that everybody likes," Chambers said. "Those people usually don't get much done to help people. Karen Peterson got my support because she'll speak up even when it's controversial to do so."
Some of those issues Senator Peterson tackles include raising the minimum wage to $15 and endorsing the Green New Deal. The Green New Deal addresses climate change while also creating jobs and reduce economic inequality. The New Orleans Democrat voiced environmental justice issues in the state, including the controversial "Cancer Alley."
"I'm hoping to work with the state leaders and the local leaders to save lives," she said. "People at least need to be listened to, and we need to hear them out and understand the health implications. It's not always just about economic development and jobs."
Peterson's environmental stance led to her getting endorsed by the National League of Conservation Voters. Councilmembers Cleve Dunn Jr. of District 6, Councilwoman Erika Green of District 5, Councilwoman Carolyn Coleman District 10, Vice President & Executive Director for City Year Baton Rouge Jada Lewis, and Representative Larry Selders also support Senator Peterson.
Early voting for the April 24 election is on Saturday, April 10 through Saturday, April 17 (excluding Sunday, April 11), from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, visit www.GeauxVote.com.
