As the Missouri Senate convened Tuesday, four Black Democratic senators are set to represent the St. Louis area — two of whom are making history as the state’s youngest Black male senator and the first Black man to serve in a Senate leadership role in two decades.
Including a senator from the Kansas City area, Black representation now sits at five Senate seats, compared to four during the previous legislative session. They hold a majority of the Senate’s minority party, which holds eight seats against the Republicans’ 23 seats.
Sen. Brian Williams represents District 14 and was elected to the Senate in 2018 when he ran unopposed; his current term ends Jan. 4, 2023. He was the only Black man serving as senator in the last session and will become the first Black man in two decades to hold a leadership role in the state Senate when he takes over as assistant minority floor leader. District 14 includes University City up through Ferguson and west through Hazelwood.
For Williams, going into the next legislative session with diverse representation is critical. He said in an interview he said he plans to pass his police reform bill by opening the dialogue with Republicans regarding his and other people of color’s experiences. Williams also wants to make advocating for women and people of color a primary focus of the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus.
“And having that dynamic, I think is not only going to enhance the legislature in terms of talking about issues that impact Black communities and ensure that they have representation, but I think it also ensures that there is accountability in place when it comes to our colleagues to understand that diversity [and] equitable policies when it comes to Black communities should be at the forefront of the Democratic agenda — but also of the legislature — and I’m optimistic with those four we can do that.”
Sen.-elect Steve Roberts echoed Williams. The lawyer has been chairman of the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus while serving in the state House and has focused their agenda on women’s rights, women empowerment and criminal justice reform, the latter issue being the real reason Roberts said he ran for public office.
Roberts replaces Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, who reached her term limit in the senate, and will represent District 5. He will become the youngest Black senator in Missouri history to take office at age 32. District 5 encompasses the majority of St. Louis along with parts of north and south St. Louis County.
“What’s been very encouraging for me is that I’m finding a lot of my Republican colleagues are very supportive and kind of see that this mass incarceration model doesn’t work,” Roberts said. “We need to change our perspective on how we prosecute crimes and what justice this really is, because it’s not like you do your time and you come out and everything is good. I mean, in our state, you can legally be discriminated on for your employment, where you live and so it makes it hard for you to just get back on your feet.”
As for Sen. Karla May, she said she’s excited about the potential change and new energy from the recently elected senators. While she doesn’t see November’s election as a significant ideological shift in voters, she does want to remind people to remain diligent outside of election seasons.
“I really believe that individuals should stay engaged to understand what’s happening and how that is impacting them,” she said. “Knowing who your representation is is definitely key — and knowing what that person’s responsibility is and how that responsibility impacts your community. So I think that we should stay engaged along the way.”
May represents District 4 and was elected to the Senate in 2018 when she ran unopposed; her current term ends Jan. 4, 2023. May beat incumbent Sen. Jacob Hummel in the 2018 Democratic primary with 57 percent of the vote. Hummel, who is white, was elected in a special election in 2016. District 4 covers parts of Baden and Jennings, all of Forest Park, parts of Clayton and south through St. Louis Hills.
Sen.-elect Angela Mosley’s seat in the Missouri State Senate flipped from a white representative to a Black representative when she won the Nov. 3 election in District 12. She replaced Gina Walsh, a white Democrat who reached her term limit. District 13 represents Florissant, most of the Bellefontaine Neighborhood and up through old Jamestown.
Mosley said she hopes she and her Democratic colleagues can work together to advance the Black community.
“Hopefully we’ll have more voting power and hopefully we can get the other side to go with us on issues that would negatively affect our community,” she said. “… Hopefully, we can work together to get them to come along with us because it’s hard to get anything done for the Black community when you have so many against us.”
Sen.-elect Barbara Washington was elected to the Senate on Nov. 3 and will represent District 9, an area just southeast of Kansas City. She could not be reached for this story.