Former Congressman and head of the NAACP Kweisi Mfume announced today he would run for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Sen. Paul Sarbanes. (He is seen here with President Clinton in this awkward photo from the Center for American Progress.) Sarbanes announced on Friday he would not run for re-election. Mfume began his political career as a radio commentator in the 1970s, served as five-term U.S. congressman before stepping down to head the NAACP between 1996 and November 2004. In that period he was credited for reforming the management of the organization, which now has “enjoyed a budget surplus for eight consecutive years and an increasing endowment fund.” Mfume told the Post his campaign would focus on overcrowded and underfunded of public schools, high health care costs, and “low expectations” for youth.
