User:LizArchive/Harley Stewart

Harley Stewart (born January 12, 1964) is an American politician and activist currently serving as a U.S. Senator from Savannah since May 4, 2004. She served as Mayor of Jackson from 1997 until 2004 and is a member of the Farmer Labor Party. Stewart is a Socialist.

Personal Life
Stewart was born on January 12, 1964 in Gloster, Mississippi to Mary Andrews (b. 1934) and Frank Stewart (b. 1925). Stewart grew up middle class and her family moved to Jackson, Mississippi in 1977, where Stewart grauduated Farley High School in 1981. In 1981, Farley attended Yale University and graduated with a degree in Education in 1985. In 1982, she married her high school boyfriend, Don Baker, and had her first child, Jack, with him in 1986. Stewart began teaching at Public Schools in Fall 1986. In 1988, she had her second child, Maria. In July 1989, her mother was diagnosed with Lung Cancer but recovered in 1992. She quit teaching in Spring 1993 and began activism for education in Jackson. In 1994, she had her third child, Knox. The same year she divorced her husband of 12 years after he was arrested for Drunk Driving. In 1996, she remarried to Jon Wilkerson (b. 1957), an engineer from Nashville. She had her fourth and final child with him in 2003, Giavonna. In April 2004 her father who was 79 at the time was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease.

Political Career
Stewart always had an interest since she was a teenager in the 70s. She registered as a member of the Farmer Labor Party when it was formed in 1988. She volunteered regularly in political elections from 1982 to 1993. In 1993, she began activism primarily for education. In 1996, she challenged long time incumbent J. Kane Ditto for Mayor of Jackson. She was only 33 and was expected to lose. She ran a campaign based on Progressive reform to the impoverished Jackson. In a huge upset, she defeated Mayor Ditto by a margin of 8%, 54-46%. While mayor, she focused on Progressive social and economic reforms. She was easily reelected in 2000 by a margin of 21%. In May 2005, she was appointed to the United States Senate by Governor Cole.