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The Democrat who formerly held the seat of the late Rep. Elijah Cummings re-won the position in Maryland's special election Tuesday and will finish the term off in Congress.
Kweisi Mfume held the seat in the 7th Congressional District -- a heavily Democratic and predominantly black region -- for five terms before leaving to lead the NAACP.
Mfume easily defeated Republican Kimberly Klacik in a contest that was pared down to just three polling stations due to the coronavirus, and where voters were encouraged to mail in their ballots ahead of time.
He will serve out the rest of Cummings’ term, which ends in January, and also run as the incumbent in Maryland’s June primary to be the nominee for a full term in November.
Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than four to one in Mfume's district, which includes a significant portion of the city of Baltimore, as well as parts of Baltimore and Howard counties. The diverse district includes parts of Baltimore that have struggled with poverty and violent crime, as well as more affluent areas and landmarks such as Johns Hopkins Hospital.
A champion for stricter gun control measures and promoting apprenticeships for young people to find work -- citing joblessness as a precursor to crime -- in a region riddled with violence, Mfume clinched the majority of votes in the city of Baltimore, as well as both Howard and Baltimore counties.
The district includes an area in Baltimore that had the highest number of reported coronavirus cases in the state for weeks. Democratic lawmakers have opined over the disproportionate deaths of African-Americans from COVID-19, citing socioeconomic factors that contribute to the high death tolls.
“It’s almost like being attacked by the virus and having someone tie your arm behind your back, because you can’t fight back the way you should,” Mfume, who spent several years at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Council for Minority Health Disparities, said of health challenges in the black community.
Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., welcomed Mfume back to the House, saying: “As both the predecessor and now successor to our friend and colleague Elijah Cummings, I know Congressman Mfume will serve the people of the 7th Congressional district in a way that honors Elijah’s deep legacy and builds on his incredible record."
Meanwhile, Klacik tweeted ahead of her loss: “That one time when hard work didn’t pay off. Perhaps one day District 7 will want a change. Proud of my team & the work we put in. We will continue to wait for the final results.”
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President Trump, in an effort to slam then-House Oversight Committee chairman Cummings -- who led multiple investigations against the president at the time -- called Mfume's district a “disgusting, rat and rodent-infested mess” where “no human being would want to live.”
Cummings died in October 2019 in the midst of impeachment proceedings against Trump, after a long bout of health complications.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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