As a young girl growing up in a military family, U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards says she and her five siblings went to the dinner table with more than an appetite. Every evening, she recalls, the children were expected to share something they had thought about, read or heard about. Many times the conversations would lean toward politics and other robust topics.
An even more influential part of her upbringing, Edwards says, was her parents’ insistence that their children avoid using the word “can’t” and live up to their dreams and aspirations. “Those things have contributed to my work ethic, my intellectual curiosity, and to my belief that anything is possible,” says the four-term congresswoman.
Edwards represents residents of District 4, territory that covers Prince George’s and parts of Anne Arundel County. If her campaign is successful, she would be the second African-American woman in the Senate—there hasn’t been one in more than two decades—and the first black Senator in Maryland. She acknowledges that it is essential for the Senate to have diverse representation. It is just as important, she says, for constituents to have a representative who has the personal experiences and perspective to carry the voice of the middle-class to the Senate.
Edwards stresses that she did not “grow up in Annapolis politics” but has skills and experience that give her a “lens” into voters’ needs. She is a lawyer and community activist who has held leadership positions in philanthropy, and the private and nonprofit sectors.
“What drives me is trying to make a better way for families who are just like mine, who just want to meet their responsibilities and want for their children to do better than they did,” says the single parent of a 27-year-old son. “I’m driven to that because of the way I have grown up.”
A first-generation college graduate, Edwards says she accumulated $100,000 in student debt which she has paid off, and struggled to pay rent, utility bills and late fees for child care—bread-and-butter issues that working families deal with.
One of the first bills she got passed and one that she considers her most proud achievement established an after-school supper program where children who received free and reduced lunch can now eligible to receive dinner.
Health care was another area of focus. When the Affordable Care Act was making its way through the legislative process, Edwards says she worked hard to understand what the impact on consumers who already had insurance coverage. “When I figured out there was a real gap I went to leadership and got passed legislation that allows our insurance commissioners to review rate increases proposed by insurance companies, and then to penalize them if they were unjustifiably high,” she explains. “That has resulted in savings to Maryland consumers this year that was announced of about $66.6 million dollars.”
A resident of Fort Washington in Prince George’s County, Edwards says she has been traveling to every corner of the state to meet the voters of “all walks of life” including Baltimore County’s. Their issues focus on development, education and the environment.
When it comes to constituent service, Edwards says she takes it personal. “By the time people come to a congressional office, they have exhausted every available course and we’re their last stop. Even when they are not federal issues, we make sure they are connected directly with a person in the county or the state who can solve their problem.”
She recalls cutting through bureaucratic red tape to get a woman who had multiple sclerosis her disability payments, and intervening to halt the foreclosure of a family dealing with a son who had a brain tumor and a husband who lost his job. “We were able to, through the intervention, save the home, the parents are back to work, the son is healthy and they are still in their family home.”
To connect constituents to resources, Edwards holds foreclosure prevention forums, college fairs for parents and students, workshops for small business owners, and forums for nonprofit organizations. “It’s about individual constituents but also about strengthening systems of support for people who want to contribute to the economy,” she says.
When asked how her chief rival, Rep. Chris Van Hollen, has secured numerous endorsements from African-American elected officials, Edwards attributes the support and his significant fundraising advantage to the Washington establishment. “I’m not surprised that my opponent, who comes out of the political apparatus and establishment, has the support of someone who comes out of the political apparatus.”
Former national NAACP President Ben Jealous, several unions and legislators have endorsed Edwards, but she says the most important endorsements come from grassroots. “I’m proud that we’re running a campaign that reaches the people.”
“It doesn’t matter where they are in the state, I am going to represent them. Every single day I will wake up fighting for them.”
Throughout the campaign, it’s been a family affair. Her mother makes calls in the phone bank, her sisters are knocking on doors and her son, Jared, advises her on issues that move young people. “He’s helped me reach out to young people who might not otherwise be involved, Edwards says. “He’s your classic millennial.”
Win or lose, what will Edwards be doing on April 27, the day after the General Election? “Making calls to thank people and get a really good night’s sleep.”
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