EMILYs List Endorses Barbara Sharief For Congress in FL-20

For Immediate Release
October 29, 2021

EMILYs List Endorses Barbara Sharief For Congress in FL-20 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, endorsed Barbara Sharief in the special election to represent Florida’s 20th Congressional District. Laphonza Butler, president of EMILYs List, released the following statement:

“EMILYs List is thrilled to endorse Barbara Sharief in the special election to represent Florida’s 20th Congressional District. Sharief’s career has been one of public service, advocacy, and breaking barriers. We know that her experience in the health care industry and as Broward County commissioner will help her fight for Floridians in Congress. She will be a champion for making health care more affordable and accessible; expanding Medicare and Medicaid; supporting those most affected by the pandemic; improving local infrastructure; and protecting the rights of women, LGBTQ+ people, and voters. Barbara Sharief is the right choice for a better, brighter future for Floridians, and we are proud to stand by her.” 

Barbara Sharief was born in South Florida and raised in Miami-Dade County. She obtained associate's, bachelor's, and master's degrees in nursing as well as an Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner certification and a Doctor of Nursing Practice. In 2001, she founded South Florida Pediatric Homecare, Inc., serving residents in Broward and Miami-Dade counties. Her experience led her to public service, and she first served as commissioner and vice mayor for the city of Miramar from 2009-2010. In 2010, she was elected to represent District 8 on the Broward County Commission. In 2013, Sharief was selected as the first Black woman mayor of Broward County and was selected again in 2016. If elected to represent FL-20, she would be the first Black woman to hold the office.

EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, has raised over $700 million to elect Democratic pro-choice women candidates. With a grassroots community of over five million members, EMILY's List helps Democratic women win competitive campaigns – across the country and up and down the ballot – by recruiting and training candidates, supporting and helping build strong campaigns, researching the issues that impact women and families, running nearly $50 million in independent expenditures in the last cycle alone, and turning out women voters and voters of color to the polls. Since our founding in 1985, we have helped elect the country's first woman as vice president, 158 women to the House, 26 to the Senate, 16 governors, and more than 1,300 women to state and local office. More than 40 percent of the candidates EMILYs List has helped elect to Congress have been women of color. After the 2016 election, more than 60,000 women reached out to EMILY's List about running for office laying the groundwork for the next decade of candidates for local, state, and national offices. In our effort to elect more women in offices across the country, we have created our Run to Win program, expanded our training program, including a Training Center online, and trained thousands of women.