Five black women on statewide ballot making history in Georgia

Photo: WSB-TV

“If you want a change, the mindset of a state or a nation, all you have to do is elect a woman and that’s what we intend to do – elect five women and have them represent the state of Georgia,” says Democratic Labor commissioner nominee Robbin Shipp. For the first time in the state of Georgia there are five African-American women on the ballot for state offices in the November election.

The five African-American women are running for state positions that include: labor commissioner, school superintendent, secretary of state, lieutenant governor and insurance commissioner. Shipp says that she is “completely honored and humbled to be the Democratic Labor Commissioner (nominee) and is very excited to join the ticket.” Although they are making history in the election as women of color, the female candidates firmly believe that the color of their skin is less important than what they bring to the table in terms of ability. Democrat Doreen Carter, who is running for Secretary of State, says that her ethnicity has nothing to do with her qualifications for the job as she “holds several business degrees: one in accounting, an MBA and a Masters degree in theology”. Next month, the women will travel on a statewide bus tour to reach out to women who, too, want to see changes in the male-dominated establishment. The contenders of the women say that they welcome them as candidates based on their qualifications and not based off of their gender or ethnicity.