Another Democratic woman, Bentonville social worker Daisy Bonilla, is mounting a challenge to an entrenched Republican incumbent in District 93, Rep. Jim Dotson, a far-right conservative.
She’s the latest in a number of women who’ve waged well-organized campaigns in the last two years in Northwest Arkansas. A couple of Democratic women unseated Republicans in Washington County in 2016.
Bonilla, who’d be the first Latina elected to the legislature, will formally announce Saturday. Bonilla has lived in Bentonville for 13 years and says on her website:
I’m a social justice warrior and some of the issues I’m running on are child advocacy, access to Healthcare, equity and inclusion.
I believe in fighting for child rights, that we protect those who are voiceless and often unprotected, especially for children who are survivors of abuse and are often trapped in our broken foster care system. That our LGBTQIA+ community have the ability to go to any doctors office and access quality healthcare in a safe, welcoming environment. That our seniors be taken care off by industries that are funded to provide quality and dignified care and that families can trust that they are leaving them in safe and capable hands. And that we learn to embrace our differences and welcome one another instead of fearing what’s unknown.