Danielle Walker (politician)

Danielle Walker (born August 18, 1976) is an American politician and community activist, currently serving as a Democratic member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, representing the 51st district, which covers Morgantown and the majority of Monongalia County. As of 2021, Walker is the only Black woman serving in the West Virginia Legislature.^[1]

Career[]

Political career[]

In response to the terrorist attack perpetrated on counter-protesters of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, Walker attended a vigil with her oldest son, which was held on the campus of West Virginia University. Her son, then a student of WVU, had previously considered attending the University of Virginia, located in Charlottesville. Walker has stated that she felt compelled to speak out against the alt-right movement at the vigil, after thinking of the potential that her son could have been a victim of the attack, should he have chosen to ultimately attend UVA.^[2] Members of the local Democratic Party, impressed by Walker's speech, later recruited her to run as a candidate for the West Virginia House of Delegates' 51st district.^[3] Walker accepted the proposition and won election in November 2018.^[4] She was re-elected to a second term in November 2020.^[5]

Community involvement[]

Walker is a member and supporter of several organizations, including Black Lives Matter; the NAACP; , an organization promoting progressive values throughout the state; the National Organization for Women; Moms Clean Air Force, an environmental protection organization; Planned Parenthood; the Working Families Party; , a statewide organization focused on economic justice, educational justice, racial justice, and civic engagement; Mon County Read Aloud, an organization focused on improving childhood literacy; , a women's climate change advocacy and environmental protection organization; MoveOn; and the Sierra Club.^[2]

Personal life[]

Walker was born on August 18, 1976, in New Iberia, Louisiana, to Oscar Walker, Sr. and Derbie Bernard.^[6] After graduating from New Iberia Senior High School, Walker attended Teche Area Technical Institute, where she obtained a certificate in accounting; she also completed undergraduate coursework at the University of Southwestern Louisiana, however, did not obtain a degree.^[7]

Widowed at just 29-years-old, Walker remarried and moved with her two sons to Morgantown, West Virginia, after her husband was relocated for his job. After the move, the two divorced, although Walker would choose to remain in Morgantown with her children.^[2] As a single mother raising two disabled children, Walker was chosen to receive her own universal-designed home through Habitat for Humanity in 2015; she has remained an advocate of the organization since.^[2][8]

In 2021, Walker came out as a queer during a press conference in support of the Fairness Act,^[9][10] which would add sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes in West Virginia’s Human Rights Act and the Fair Housing Act. Walker is the second openly LGBTQ+ woman to serve in the Legislature after former delegate Amanda Estep-Burton.^[9]

Electoral history[]

2018 election[]

Primary election[]

General election[]

2020 election[]

Primary election[]

General election[]

References[]

External links[]

• Official website
• Danielle Walker at West Virginia Legislature
• Danielle Walker at Ballotpedia
• Profile at Vote Smart