Brenda Lawrence for Congress

Who am I?

I have lived in the newly drawn 14th district my entire life. I was born and raised in Detroit and am a home-grown leader. A product of Michigan's public school system, I am an alumna of Pershing High School and received my BA in Public Administration from Central Michigan University. I was elected Mayor of the City of Southfield in November of 2001 as the first African American and first woman mayor of Southfield, a city with a resident population of 78,300, a city budget of $118 million, and 833 city employees. I am committed to diversity, fiscal responsibility, education, and keeping a clean and safe city.

I have been a community advocate for many years, both as an elected official and a private citizen. I have served on the Southfield City Council and was elected President in 1999. As a Councilwoman, I gained experience in managing a multi-million dollar budget and demonstrated fiscal responsibility. I also served on the Southfield Public School Board of Education as President, Vice-President, and Secretary. My love for community involvement has been evident through
my previous service as a volunteer in various capacities on the Parent Youth Guidance Commission, Oakland County United Way Advisory Committee, and Oakland County Aids Council.

Since becoming myor, I have initiated the following community programs: The Mayor's Walk community health program; Mayor's Roundtable-a citizen driven forum where residents can discuss one-on-one topics of concern; Southfield Reads! --a program designed to promote reading literacy in the City of Southfield; Annual Flower Day; City-wide Blood Drive; and
Revolution Read.

Why am I running?

There is a leadership void in southeast Michigan that needs to be filled. As the mayor of a successful community in this very diverse district, I have a unique understanding of what this region needs from the federal government to stabilize. We have some incredibly challenged communities in this district, including Detroit, Pontiac, Hamtramck and Royal Oak Township. We must create policy at the federal level that will help these struggling areas. I understand how to connect the dots between federal, state, county and local government bodies and I will focus on results-oriented policies.

My Goals

My first goal is to help bring jobs to the 14th District. My second goal is to fight to protect both the young and the seniors in the 14th District. We need to improve the education system to help our youth become successful citizens, and we need to stop adding financial burdens to our seniors, who are already living in challenging circumstances. These at-risk populations do not always have a voice at the table, and I will speak on their behalf.

My DFA Values

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My Campaign is People Powered!

Running against two well-financed sitting Congressmen, people power is what my campaign is all about. We have over 300 active volunteers who phone bank, walk doors, work events and assist with every aspect of my campaign.

Voice support

74 people support this campaign.


About the Endorsement Process

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