Lula Gilliam
Lula Gilliam (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Georgia State Senate to represent District 35. She lost in the Democratic primary on May 24, 2022.
Gilliam completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Lula Gilliam was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Gilliam earned a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1985. Her career experience includes being the founder and executive director of Youth Enhancement Services. Gilliam has been affiliated with the Atlanta NAACP.[1]
Elections
2022
See also: Georgia State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for Georgia State Senate District 35
Incumbent Donzella James won election in the general election for Georgia State Senate District 35 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Donzella James (D) | 100.0 | 62,015 |
| Total votes: 62,015 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Georgia State Senate District 35
Incumbent Donzella James defeated Whitney Kenner Jones, Lula Gilliam, and Mike Glanton Jr. in the Democratic primary for Georgia State Senate District 35 on May 24, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Donzella James | 70.9 | 17,707 |
 | Whitney Kenner Jones | 11.3 | 2,821 | |
 | Lula Gilliam | 9.8 | 2,453 | |
 | Mike Glanton Jr. | 7.9 | 1,977 | |
| Total votes: 24,958 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Lula Gilliam completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Gilliam's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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https://www.electlulagilliam.com/meet-lula.html
Please visit www.electlulagilliam.com for a comprehensive bio.
- For more than 30 years, I have worked in our community to make a difference in the lives of children, youth, and their families. I know too well the debilitating impact of racism, generational childhood poverty and inequity, but also the positive and transformative power of education within the “it takes a village” construct. In 1990, determined to share my love for education and her escape from the clutches of generational poverty, I founded Youth Enhancement Services (Y.E.S.) (www.yesgeorgia.org), a community-based nonprofit organization. Today, the agency continues to address the academic needs of youth (ages 16 to 24) who have left schools without completing their high school diploma.
- I am a dependable, fierce, and unwavering advocate for the well-being and success of our communities. I have developed empowerment programs in education, workforce readiness training, life skills, and mental health initiatives. I have touched the lives of thousands of young people and their families throughout my years of service. Following Hurricane Katrina, I hosted a New Orleans family of thirteen, helping them to recover and restore normalcy to their lives. I continue to provide aid to the underserved and disenfranchised. I have a long history of partnerships with non-profits and government throughout metropolitan Atlanta, helping to bring about positive change to local communities.
- My entire life is one of public service in the fight for equity and social justice. I am a Life Member of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), member of the Executive Committee, and chair the Education Committee for the past eight years. I have received numerous awards: Lula is the recipient of several awards, including: * Atlanta NAACP “Outstanding Community Service Award” * Barron Connections, Inc. “Heart 2 Heart Award – Doing Good in the Neighborhood” * Urban League of Greater Atlanta “Spirit of the League Award”
ENHANCE EDUCATION IMPACT STRATEGIES
Advocate for House Study Committee to identify what resources are needed to successfully educate and transition our youth from the custody of the State of Georgia (Department of Juvenile Justice and Department of Family and Children Services – especially youth aging out of foster care) and Juvenile Courts to literate, functioning members of society
Re-evaluate the education process of Special Needs students receiving Certificates of Attendance and unable to continue to the state’s technical and two-year colleges without obtaining a GED (General Education Diploma)
Support Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for Department of Corrections’ returning and incarcerated citizens serving five years or less
REDEFINE PUBLIC SAFETY
Create state-wide registry of officers fired (or forced to resign) due to police brutality, other egregious misconduct, and/or criminal acts -- prohibiting future law enforcement employment in Georgia
Extend police academy training to 16 weeks to ensure new officers receive adequate de-escalation, cultural relevancy, and community-policing training
Require ongoing (and extensive) mental health, de-escalation strategies, and cultural relevancy training for public safety patrol
Increase compensation for state public safety
STRENGTHEN VOTING RIGHTS
Restore the voting rights of returning citizens as soon as they are released from prisons and jails
Support legislation that promotes strengthening voting rights
There are so many strong African American women I have looked up to throughout my life, the first was my mother, Earnesteen Gilliam. Though she suffered lots of hardships, she was determined to make certain that her children were educated, even though she only completed the 8th grade. Another was Rene Toler who saw something in me and told me I was "Berkeley material" - it determined how a little poor Black girl born and raised in the Mississippi Delta (Vicksburg, MS), could end up at the University of California, Berkeley.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated on my eleventh (11th) birthday. That event shaped my journey to work in the community to have a positive impact and upending generational poverty through education
When I was eight years old, I picked pecans all winter to buy myself a Black doll for Christmas.
It depends on whether that "compromise" is not in the best interests of the people you serve. The answer is no, in that case.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2022 Elections
External links
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Candidate Georgia State Senate District 35 |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 17, 2022
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