A Democratic Senate candidate in Illinois, upset over the national party endorsing her rival in the primary, is accusing the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee of “total insensitivity” towards “African-American women.”
In a scathing response to the committee, Andrea Zopp, the former leader of the Chicago Urban League, said she was “saddened and shocked” the DSCC would throw its support behind Rep. Tammy Duckworth.
According to Zopp, the committee didn’t interview her before making the endorsement. She accused the Democratic party committee of “total insensitivity to Chicago, African-American women and the democratic process.”
On Thursday, Sen. Jon Tester, the chairman of the DSCC, announced the committee’s backing of Duckworth, a veteran of the Iraq war and a double amputee.
“Tammy Duckworth has spent her life serving this nation and the state of Illinois, and she has a proven record of advocating for veterans, women and working families,” he said. “Tammy’s incredible story reflects her persistence and tenacity, even when the odds are stacked against her, and she brings that same determination to her work on behalf of her constituents every single day.”
According to her website, “as the CEO & president of the Chicago Urban League, Zopp fought to increase opportunity for small businesses and entrepreneurs striving to recover from the Great Recession.”
“As the first woman and first African-American to serve as First Assistant State’s Attorney in Cook County, and as a prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s office, she fought to keep our neighborhoods safe by taking on illegal guns, violent crime and criminal organizations; and worked to protect victims of domestic violence.”
National Democrats, hoping to win back control of the Senate in 2016, are making endorsements in battleground states, encouraging the party to nominate who they see as the most electable general election candidates.
But that effort has upset the black community in at least one other case: the Senate minority leader endorsed Rep. Chris Van Hollen over Rep. Donna Edwards in the Maryland Senate race, something a well-known party donor called “insulting.”