FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 20, 2022 DRAFT
Contact: Molly-Dodd Adams, mollydodd@gmail.com, 813-469-4107 (call/text)

Black Women Leaders Driskell and Scoon to Speak about Florida Legislature and Redistricting
House Minority Leader-Designate Fentrice Driskell and League of Women Voters of Florida President Cecile Scoon will address the Florida Democratic Black Women’s Consortium on Sunday

Gainesville, Fla. – The Florida Democratic Black Women’s Consortium (FDBWC) will host two prominent Black women politicos at its general meeting on Sunday, January 23, at 6 p.m. EST. Florida House Minority Leader-Designate Fentrice Driskell will speak about strengthening the Democratic presence in the state legislature. Cecile Scoon, president of the nonpartisan League of Women Voters (LWV) of Florida, will discuss redistricting maps proposed by the Florida House, Senate, and Governor Ron DeSantis.

“Black women in Florida have the potential to create significant, meaningful change for the people of Florida, if they have knowledge and support of informed and groundbreaking leaders like Rep. Driskell and Ms. Scoon,” said Dr. Cynthia Moore Chestnut, chair of the FDBWC and former member of the Florida House. “This is an excellent opportunity for Democratic Black women in Florida and those who support them to learn about issues critical to having a voice and influence in our government.”

Rep. Fentrice Driskell was first elected to House District 63 (HD63) in 2018 and ran unopposed in 2020. A native of Polk county, she attended public schools and went on to graduate from both Harvard University and Georgetown University Law Center. Driskell will make history in 2024 when she becomes the first Black woman to lead the Florida House Democrats. House District 63 includes parts of northern Hillsborough County andTampa.

Civil rights lawyer Cecile M. Scoon, Esq., is the first Black woman elected to serve as president of the LWV of Florida. She earned degrees at Harvard and University of Virginia School of Law and spent five years as an active-duty Air Force JAG prosecuting in military courts-martial. She retired from the A.F. reserves as a Major in 2005.

The FDBWC general meeting will take place at 6 p.m. EST, on Sunday, January 23, via Zoom and is free and open to the public. Both speakers will deliver a short presentation and take questions from attendees at the online meeting. For more information, visit www.FDBWC.org.

ABOUT THE FLORIDA DEMOCRATIC BLACK WOMEN’S CONSORTIUM (FDBWC):
The Florida Democratic Black Women’s Consortium is a political action committee dedicated to voter empowerment and recruiting and supporting Democratic Black women to run for elected or appointed offices in Florida. The consortium works to fund, inspire, recruit, support, and train Black Democratic women to serve in an elected or appointed position in the state of Florida and beyond; to expand the voting base by registering and educating new and returning voters on the issues that impact their daily lives; to take positions and make statements on issues of concerns for FDBWC members and their base; and to offer training and provide tools for engaging the public on issues of concern of this group.