Mandela Barnes made history Tuesday when he was elected Wisconsin’s first Black Lieutenant Governor.
“This race came down to the wire, and we made history. Now it’s time to make a difference,” he tweeted.
The 31-year-old Milwaukee native is just the second black person elected to statewide office in Wisconsin and follows Vel Phillips who was elected to statewide office in 1978 and served as secretary of state for one term.
Barnes, a Spring 2005 initiate of the Gamma Phi Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi at Alabama A&M University was endorsed by multiple big names and groups including Barack Obama for the position.
He took to twitter Tuesday night to celebrate his victory:
“This race came down to the wire, and we made history. Now it’s time to make a difference,” he tweeted.
Before running for Lieutenant Governor, Barnes served two terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly representing District 11, which includes northern Milwaukee and a small part of Wauwatosa.
