8
Braun was the right woman at the right time during her 1992 run for the
U.S. Senate seat in Illinois. While she ran a political campaign
emphasizing economic issues, coalition building, and garnering support
from mainstream party officials, she received overwhelming black support
and described herself as a product of the civil rights movement.
Around the time of her Senate run, many women had been angered
by the treatment of Anita Hill and this cross-section of women were the
initial group of supporters that pushed her to join the race.
12
Her stance
on many women’s issues placed her on the middle ground between radical
and moderate feminists, thus giving her a good vantage point on which to
draw support. In addition to this, her performance in her various state-
level offices (Cook County Registrar of Deeds, State Legislature) had
earned her the support of Chicago’s black voting population.
13
Rather shockingly, however, during the primaries for the Senate
race, Moseley-Braun was not given the endorsement of the only other
African-American public official who had won a statewide office, namely
Attorney General Roland Burris. She was also not endorsed by the state’s
other high-ranking Democrat and soon-to-be fellow senator, Paul Simon.
12
Huey, Perry. Race, Politics, and Governance in the United States.Gainesville, Florida.
University Press of Florida, 1996, p. 51.
13
Ibid.
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