Senator Brian Benjamin will be New York's next lieutenant governor

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has chosen Brian A. Benjamin, a New York City-based state senator, as her lieutenant governor, two sources familiar with the decision tell CBS News.

A formal announcement is expected on Thursday, said the sources, both of whom were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

During her two-week transition, Hochul said she would appoint someone from the nation's largest city to be her lieutenant to provide geographic balance. Benjamin is African American, providing racial balance to the team as well.

Benjamin, 44, chairs the New York Senate's revenue and budget committee and is an assistant majority leader in the upper chamber. He represents parts of Harlem and the Upper East and West Sides of the city.

Benjamin first took office in 2017, following the departure of Sen. Bill Perkins, who left his seat after being elected to the New York City Council. Benjamin won easily in the special election — he was the lone Democrat in an almost entirely Democratic district.

He then won a full term in 2018 without facing a primary opponent.

Herschel Walker files paperwork to run for Senate in Georgia

Herschel Walker filed paperwork on Tuesday to run for Senate as a Republican in Georgia, delivering a clear sign that former NFL star is seeking to challenge Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) next year.

Walker has floated a potential Senate bid for months, prodded on by former President Trump, a friend of Walker's who has indicated that he is all but certain to endorse the football star in the race.

An official campaign announcement could come within days, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. Walker’s highly anticipated entrance into the race makes him the most prominent challenger yet to Warnock, who narrowly won a runoff election earlier this year against former Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.).

Even before he filed his paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday, there were signs that Walker was likely to run. Despite living in Texas for years, Walker registered to vote in Georgia earlier this month using an Atlanta address.

[SOURCE: THE HILL]

House approves John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act

The House approved the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act on Tuesday in a party-line vote, kicking the legislation to the Senate — where it faces longer odds of passage.

The bill was approved 219-212, with zero Republicans voting for it.

“Nothing is more fundamental to our democracy than the right to vote.” Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.), a main sponsor of the bill, said from the floor during debate on the legislation.

“It was in my district that ordinary Americans peacefully protested for the equal right to vote for all Americans,” Sewell noted, referring to the struggle of the late Lewis and other civil rights activists on the Edmund Pettus Bridge 56 years ago.

The bill approved Tuesday centers around restoring the federal preclearance originally instituted by the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which was eroded by a 2013 Supreme Court decision.

The preclearance required states and jurisdictions with histories of racial discrimination — largely the Jim Crow South — to gain approval from the Department of Justice before implementing any change to voting procedure.

[SOURCE: THE HILL]

Camp Lejeune plans Montford Point Marine Day ceremony to honor first African American marines

Gen. David Berger, 38th commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, will provide remarks on the legacy and historical impact of the Montford Point Marines, the first African Americans to serve in the Marine Corps, during a ceremony Thursday at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune.

The 12th annual Montford Point Marine Day Ceremony will begin at 9 a.m. at the Montford Point Marines Memorial in Lejeune Memorial Gardens. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the event will be limited to invited guests only. The public is encouraged to watch the ceremony live online at the Camp Lejeune Facebook Page

According to a release from Camp Lejeune officials, the Montford Point Marines were a group of nearly 20,000 African Americans who served from 1942 to 1949. Prior to 1942, African Americans were barred from enlisting in the Marine Corps.

The first African American Marines were trained at Montford Point Camp, located in Jacksonville as a satellite camp of Camp Lejeune. In 1949, President Harry Truman ordered the racial integration of the military and Montford Point was renamed.

On July 22, 2010, the U.S. Congress passed Senate Resolution 587, which designated Aug. 26 as Montford Point Marine Day. Today, the Montford Point Marine Memorial includes features to honor those who trained at Montford Point Camp.

This year’s ceremony will include a presentation of the Congressional Gold Medal to Marine veterans Cpl. Clarence L. Clark, Cpl. Clarence Powell and Pfc. Othelma Shell. There will also be a performance by the U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Team.

[SOURCE: Carolina Coastal]

Smithsonian acquires rare images by early African American photographers

The Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, DC, has purchased a groundbreaking collection of images by some of history's earliest Black photographers.

Pictures from the first African American-owned studios were among more than 280 objects acquired from New York collector Larry J. West, the institution announced Tuesday.

Smithsonian curator John Jacob said in a press statement that spotlighting early African American photographers will help the museum show "an inclusive history of photography, with African Americans among its earliest practitioners, conveying to viewers their contributions as innovators and entrepreneurs."

[SOURCE: CNN]