How Mandela Barnes Made History

 

     Mandela Barnes did not come from extraordinary circumstances. The son of a teacher and union member, he found his passion in community organizing, working for numerous political campaigns and local organizations.

     Elected to the state legislature in 2013, he made his mark in the four years he served. He introduced legislation that expanded voting rights for young Wisconsinites, gave juvenile offenders better chances at finding jobs, opposed solitary confinement, worked to aid public education, targeted predatory loans, and more.

     Despite losing his bid for State Senate in 2016, he was elected the leiutenant governor of Wisconsin in 2018, the first black man to hold the position in the state and the most powerful black elected official in Wisconsin history.

     He assumed office on January 7, 2019, breaking barriers for hundreds of thousands of black Wisconsinites. At only 32 when he was elected, he is also among Wisconsin's youngest executives, and he, no doubt, has decades of public service ahead of him.