Local Young Dem Elected to Nationwide Presidency

Arlington Young Democrat Atima Omara-Alwala has been elected president of the Young Democrats of America, becoming the first Virginian and the first African-American to hold that role.

The election was held this past Sunday. Omara-Alwala had been the YDA vice president since 2011, and her “progress” party swept the election at the YDA annual convention in San Antonio.

Omara-Alwala is a Richmond native, a 2003 graduate of the University of Virginia with a Master’s in public policy from George Mason. She worked for Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) when he was governor, and currently works as a consultant and nonprofit manager.

She was elected on a platform of training young Democrats for campaigns or political office, re-establishing a “National YDA Lobbying Day” and “collaborating with targeted Democratic campaigns to increase outreach to major constituencies including women, Latinos, African Americans and labor-affiliated voters.”