It takes an independent thinker with inner strength and determination to press forward when respected voices are saying, “no, you can’t.” Carol Shea-Porter, the first woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives by the state of New Hampshire, has been defying conventional thinking for decades.
With her recent endorsement of Barack Obama, she’s ready to do it again.
Carol earned a BA in Social Services and a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of New Hampshire. She has been a social worker and an administrator, and she also taught Politics. In these jobs, she saw how decisions made in Washington impacted people’s lives at home.
Carol’s inspiration to serve others came from a youth spent growing up in a large household. She lived with her parents and many siblings and her elderly relatives. Their home was always open to troubled teens.
Carol has volunteered for political campaigns throughout her adult life, but she became particularly involved in General Wesley Clark’s presidential campaign in 2004. During that time, she forged connections with other Granite Staters, who were looking for the same thing she was – to take our country back.
In 2006, when Carol ran in the Democratic primary, the Democratic Party establishment supported her opponent, even though he had given George Bush the benefit of the doubt on Iraq policy. Conventional thinking said that Carol didn’t have a chance to win a general election against two-term Republican Congressman Jeb Bradley. Carol ignored those who told her she couldn’t win. She ran a grassroots campaign fueled by the intelligence and passion of local activists, many with dozens of years of experience working on political campaigns. She overcame a huge financial disadvantage and the opposition of her own party – and she won the five-way primary by twenty points!
In the general election, she was again told that she didn’t have a prayer. The litany was the same – that she had no money, no professional campaign staff, little name recognition, no formal political experience. Yet she fired up her grassroots campaign and won a second stunning upset.
Today, Carol has cast aside conventional thinking again, announcing her support of Barack Obama for President. She believes that Barack’s campaign here in New Hampshire represents the same spirit of change that brought her to Washington. She said:
Sen. Barack Obama stands ready to lead our nation for the next eight years. He will heal our divisions at home and abroad. I know the Senator will use diplomacy before force wherever possible and will show intelligent restraint. After all, he was the one who turned a cold, sober eye on the Iraq evidence and accurately judged it, and wisely spoke against the war. That showed true leadership and courage.”
Carol knows that real change requires each of us to do our part. In joining the Obama campaign, she is joining many of her 2006 campaign supporters who are already working for Barack. Carol now adds her powerful voice to our growing movement in the Granite State.
With Carol’s help, we will continue to march toward the White House.
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