Hirono Boasts The Most Racially Diverse Staff Among Senate Democrats
Hawaii’s senators are consistently tops among their colleagues when it comes to hiring non-white staffers.
WASHINGTON — Nearly three out of four staffers working for U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono identify as non-white, giving her the most racially diverse office among her Democratic colleagues, according to the results of a new survey.
Senate Democrats this week as part of the caucus’ ongoing diversity initiative meant to build a workforce that better reflects the make up of the nation as a whole.
Hirono edged fellow senators Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, Raphael Warnock of Georgia and Alex Padilla of California for having the largest share of non-white staff working for her.
U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, who perennially has one of the most diverse staffs in the Senate, tied Padilla for having the fourth most diverse office, with 65% of his staff identifying as non-white. Schatz ranked first in previous surveys released in 2017 and 2018.
The Senate Indian Affairs Committee, which Schatz leads as chairman, reported that its entire staff is non-white, and is made up entirely of Asians, Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, Hawaiians and Alaska Natives.
The questionnaire found that West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin had the least racially diverse staff among Democrats, with only 7% reporting they did not identify as white.
