WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today EMILY’s List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, endorsed Donna Mercado Kim for Congress in Hawaii’s 1st Congressional District. If elected, Donna Mercado Kim would continue a strong tradition of women’s leadership in Hawai’i.
“Donna Mercado Kim is a pro-choice, pro-education, pro-labor powerhouse legislator with a long record of service to the working families of Hawai’i,” said Stephanie Schriock, President of EMILY’s List. “From Honolulu City Council to the Hawai’i House of Representatives to presiding over the State Senate, she has fought for women’s rights, clean energy, and accountable government. Donna has what it takes to continue the Hawaiian tradition of sending strong Democratic women leaders to Washington.”
Donna Mercado Kim currently serves as the 13th President of Hawaii’s State Senate. She has a long record of public service to the greater Honolulu region, previously serving as a State Representative from 1982 to 1984, on the Honolulu City Council from 1984 to 2000, and in the Hawai‘i State Senate since 2000. Donna is a longtime champion for women’s health, and has fought for access to emergency contraception and for recommending women serving in the military to have the same access to care as private citizens. During a tough economic period for Hawai’i, she has focused on critical fiscal management issues and has also fought for clean energy in the tourism-dependent Aloha State. Donna is a graduate of Farrington High School, attended the University of Hawai‘i, and received her B.A. from Washington State University.
EMILY’s List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, has raised over $390 million to support pro-choice Democratic women candidates – making it one of the most successful political organizations ever. We recruit and train candidates, support strong campaigns, research women’s issues, and turn out women voters. We’ve trained over 9,000 women to run, and helped elect over 100 women to the House, 19 to the Senate, 10 governors, and over five hundred to state and local office. Since its founding in 1985, almost one-third of the candidates EMILY’s List has helped elect to Congress have been women of color – including every single Latina, African American, and Asian American Democratic woman currently serving. During the 2011-2012 cycle, EMILY’s List raised a record-breaking $52 million dollars. With the help of our growing community — now more than three million members strong — EMILY’s List helped elect an historic number of candidates in 2012 including 19 new women to the House, six Senate incumbents, three new Senators, and 186 state and local officials.