Shay White is looking to make history in Oklahoma, becoming the first woman -- and the first African-American -- to hold a seat in the state legislature.
She hopes she can use her relatability to her advantage.
“The biggest unifying factor is that I am a voter from my district,” White told Cheddar in an interview. “I live here, I shop here, I worship here, and I contribute here.”
Like her potential constituents, White says, “sometimes I have to make a tough decision [of whether] I buy gasoline or groceries.” She says she wants to provide a voice to working families in her area.
White is one of many women jumping into the electoral fray since 2016’s presidential elections. Nearly 400 are reportedly running for the U.S. House of Representatives this year -- the most in U.S. history -- and 22 are non-incumbent black women.
But White’s campaign has nothing to do with that movement. She told Cheddar she’s wanted to run since age 12.
The twenty-six-year-old elementary school mental health provider has a prevalent presence in her community. Besides being a woman’s rights supporter, the District 77 candidate holds a leadership position within Together Oklahoma, a grassroots education and advocacy group.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-womens-march-to-elected-office).
Seven Midwestern governors announced Thursday that they will coordinate on reopening their state economies, after similar pacts were made earlier this week in the Northeast and on the West Coast.
Stock indexes ended a wobbly day with modest gains Thursday, while the biggest increases went to Amazon, Netflix and other companies poised to do the best during the coronavirus crunch.
The government’s paycheck protection loan program for small businesses is on hold. The Small Business Administration has announced that it reached the $349 billion lending limit for the program.
New York state will extend its stay-at-home restrictions at least through May 15. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday that transmission rates still need to be tamed as he prolonged the restrictions that have left most New Yorkers housebound.
Stocks are mixed in early trading on Wall Street after the government reported that 5.2 million more people filed for unemployment benefits last week, which was not quite as many as had been feared.
Another 5.2 million people filed for unemployment in the week ending April 11, according to a U.S. Department of Labor report released Thursday morning.
President Donald Trump says he’s prepared to announce new guidelines allowing some states to quickly ease up on on social distancing. At same time, though, business leaders are telling Trump they need more coronavirus testing and personal protective equipment before people can safely go back to work.
The IRS announced on March 21 that the federal income tax filing deadline has been pushed to July 15, 2020, due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Selling swept Wall Street after a dismal lineup of reports made clear how historic the coronavirus crunch has been for the economy. Markets are already bracing for what’s forecast to be the worst downturn since the Great Depression, but Wednesday’s data was even more dispiriting than expected.
John Stanton, co-founder of the Save Journalism Project, told Cheddar that the widespread cost-cutting and layoffs will have a long-term impact on the health of journalism.
