For Immediate Release
Jan 5, 2010
EMILY's List Endorses Tarryl Clark in Minnesota's 6th Congressional District
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- EMILY's List, the nation's largest financial resource for women candidates, today announced its endorsement of Tarryl Clark in Minnesota's 6th congressional district. Clark is running against two-term Republican Michele Bachmann.
"EMILY's List is proud to support Tarryl Clark in her campaign for U.S. Congress," said Ellen R. Malcolm, President of EMILY's List. "As a State Senator, Tarryl spearheaded major bipartisan initiatives on a number of issues, including education, veterans' affairs, domestic violence, consumer protection, and affordable housing. Her strong reputation of getting things done for Minnesota families is what sets her apart from her opponents and has enabled her to be such a powerful voice for her constituents."
"Tarryl is a proven vote getter in what is traditionally rough territory for Democrats," continued Malcolm. "Her candidacy puts this district in play and gives Democrats the best shot at picking up this swing-seat in November."
After winning in a Republican-leaning state Senate district in a 2005 special election and getting re-elected in 2006, Clark was chosen by her colleagues to serve as Assistant Majority Leader, the number two leadership position in the Minnesota State Senate -- recognition that speaks to her legislative skills. With her strong record of leadership and bipartisan legislative accomplishments, Tarryl has been dubbed a "rising star" by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Well before she was in the legislature, Clark was making a positive difference in her community. An attorney with a graduate degree in educational counseling, she was the founding staff person for Central Minnesota Habitat for Humanity and has been recognized for her work on the organization's "Women Build" program. She was public policy director for the Children's Defense Fund of Minnesota, developed a teen outreach program to mentor young girls through the Girl Scouts, and led a teen pregnancy prevention program for the YWCA. Clark, her husband Doug, and two sons are active in their church, where she's been a lay reader and youth minister.
In 2006, EMILY's List helped elect Amy Klobuchar, the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Minnesota. EMILY's List also helped elect Congresswoman Betty McCollum in 2000. McCollum was the first woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota in a generation.
EMILY's List is the nation's largest financial resource for women candidates. In the 2007-2008 cycle, EMILY's List raised more than $43 million to support its mission of recruiting and supporting women candidates, helping them build strong campaigns, and mobilizing women voters to turn out and vote. With more than 100,000 members across the country, EMILY's List is one of the largest political action committees in the nation. Since its founding in 1985, EMILY's List has worked to elect 80 pro-choice Democratic women to the U.S. House, 15 to the U.S. Senate, nine governors, and hundreds of women to the state legislatures, state constitutional offices, and other key local offices.
