Who are Democratic candidates for president with the most Black staffers?

(BlackmansStreet.Today) — Of a large number of candidates who are seeking the Democratic nomination for president to take on President Donald Trump, Senators Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, and Elizabeth Warren employ the most significant number of Black staffers in their offices, according to a profile of seven but not all of the candidates.

African Americans comprise 30 percent of Booker’s staff; Blacks comprise 26 percent of Harris’ team and 24 percent of Elizabeth Warren’s, according to the Diversity Report released by U.S. Senate Democratic Caucus. The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a think tank based in Washington D.C. for Black elected officials, released the data. Booker represents New Jersey, and Harris represents California.

Ironically, Senator Bernie Sanders (Vermont), who was arrested on August 12, 1963, for participating in a school segregation protest in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood while a student at the University of Chicago, has a small percentage of Blacks on his staff, only seven percent. Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet’s team is eight percent African American.

Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota) and Kirsten Gillibrand (New York) have a higher percentage of Black staff. Klobuchar’s staff is 15 percent Black, and Gillibrand’s is 11 percent African American.

Senate staffers salaries range from $30,000 a year to more than $100,000 a year, but each office sets the wages for each person who is hired based on experience.

This article originally published in the July 22, 2019 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.