Gun-Control Activist Lucy McBath Has Officially Won Her Congressional Race

From ELLE

Six years after losing her son to gun violence, gun-control activist Lucy McBath has won her midterm election, claiming a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Georgia's 6th congressional district.

Back in 2012, McBath lost her son Jordan Davis when he was shot and killed by a man who didn't like the music he was playing. A former flight attendant, McBath then became an activist, working with Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. In 2013, she became the National Spokesperson for Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, and she then took on the additional role as the Faith and Outreach Leader for Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action.

She's also a part of Mothers of the Movement, a group of women whose children have been killed by the police or gun violence; she appeared with them on stage at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. EMILY's List and the Democratic Party of Georgia have given McBath awards for her activism and political participation, but it was Rep. Renitta Shannon who told her she needed to run for Congress.

McBath told ELLE.com that even though she was afraid, she knew it was something she had to try. "I was afraid," she said. "I kept saying, I don’t know how to be a politician. I don’t know how to be a lawmaker. I’ve never done that before. Yes, I talk to them. Yes, I urged them to be on the right side of gun violence prevention, and God has given me a boldness to be able to do that, but you know, running for office is a completely different experience. And it takes a lot of strength and a lot of courage because you’re exposing yourself to the world. It’s just something I never expected I would do, but it’s necessary. And I don’t want to live the rest of my life having this opportunity being given to me and the door being opened, and I say, well out of fear, I can’t do it."

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