If you’ve been keeping up with your current events, you probably know that more women are now serving in Congress than ever before. At the State of the Union, these amazing women created a buzz by dressing in all white to honor the suffragettes. They even got a shoutout from President Trump in his speech! While we are celebrating the accomplishments of our congresswoman, let’s not forget about our women in politics closer to home.
Here in Louisiana, there’s still a lot of progress to made. Only fifteen percent of seats in the Louisiana legislature are held by women, as of before the most recent election. However, there are some really inspiring women who are making waves in the local political scene. Here are some names to watch.
LaToya Cantrell
Cantrell made history by becoming New Orleans’ first female mayor in its 300 year history. She started getting more involved in the community after Hurricane Katrina, and eventually got a spot on the City Council. As a councilwoman, Cantrell worked on improving health, housing, and the criminal justice system. She eventually went on to be elected as mayor, and has continued to push those issues on a larger scale.
Sharon Weston Broome
Broome is the President-Mayor of Baton Rouge, the second-largest city and capital of Louisiana. Some of the focuses of her political career have been education, economic development, and housing. Since being elected in 2017, Broome has done work to improve Baton Rouge’s flood recovery and public safety.
Ollie Tyler
Tyler was the first black woman in Louisiana to win a mayoral race when she was elected as the mayor of Shreveport in 2014. Shreveport is the third biggest city in Louisiana, which means that all three of the biggest cities in the state have had a woman as their mayor. This is definitely something to celebrate, including her efforts to decrease violent crime in the city.
Helena Moreno
Moreno is the Vice President of the New Orleans City Council. Before her current gig, she was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives. A large focus of her political career has been preventing domestic violence, as well as drug policy and healthcare.
As you can see, there are some really great women that are working to make Louisiana a better place.