Keeda Haynes believes she brings a unique perspective to the race for Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District. After spending over three years in prison for a crime she says she didn’t commit, she hopes a spot in Washington will allow her to speak for vulnerable constituents — and make a little history as well.
Haynes, a former public defender, is in a three-way race that includes 17-year Democratic incumbent Rep. Jim Cooper.
The primary election, which is slated for Aug. 6, has no Republican in the race so the winner will almost certainly be elected to Congress come November.
“I have a unique perspective that a lot of people don’t have. … I’ve been a defendant and defender,” Haynes told ABC News. “I really saw just how this war on drugs really decimated Black and brown, low-income communities.”
If elected, the progressive Democrat would make history as the first Black woman in Tennessee ever elected to Congress. The state has only had two Black representatives elected to Congress, with the last candidate elected over two decades ago, according to the U.S. House of Representatives.
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