Obama Alumna Only Woman, Person of Color in Congressional Bid Outside Chicago

Lauren Underwood was a Senior Advisor at the Department of Health and Human Services under President Barack Obama. Now the Public Health Nurse is hoping to flip Illinois’ 14th district currently represented by tea party Congressman Randy Hultgren (R-IL). After completing her studies at the University of Michigan and Johns Hopkins University, she began my career as a registered nurse and worked in clinical research at the National Institutes of Health. Currently, she serves as the Senior Director of Strategy and Regulatory Affairs at Next Level Health. But she doesn’t intend to stay there long. Her sites are set on Capitol Hill. And this Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority member is already well on her way. As the only woman and person of color in the race, she will face three men in the Democratic primary which will be decided on March 20, 2018. She’ll be carrying with her some heavy hitters on the campaign trail. She is already working with another Obama alumnus -- Democratic strategist and pollster Cornell Belcher. Underwood says the people of her hometown district deserve a leader who has a servant’s heart. “It’s time to pursue a new direction, one that reflects our diverse, independent, bold voices,” she says. To learn more about her campaign, click here.