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Darlene D. Harris, 42, is a lawyer in private practice in Uniondale and an administrative law judge for New York City. She is one of two African-Americans elected to countywide office for the first time in Nassau County in 1995. Harris, a Republican, served from 1996 to 1999 on the then newly created Nassau County Legislature, representing the First District.

"Well, certainly, I was very proud to serve as the first African-American female to be elected to Nassau County government. And as for our community, it was the first opportunity for us to really have a voice, a say, with regard to what was going on in Nassau County government. ...

"At the time I got elected I had just turned 30 years old, and when I was elected as a Republican, not only was I the only female Republican elected, [but] the only black Republican elected. So when we would caucus, I was the youngest. So you had the age there, you had the race there and the gender as well. It was me and 12 other white men.

"You know, a lot of people would say that those were barriers because you had to make sure that your voice was heard loud and clear and not ignored. If you don’t have that voice, how can you make sure that our county tax dollars, that we pay as well, are getting back to serve our community, as well as the different organizations in all our communities ... all the different clubs that were functioning and trying to do things to keep our children off the street and didn't have funding.

"That was another thing I was able to do while I was in office, to get, just in my first term alone, $700,000 out to at least 40 different organizations to help assist them [in] promoting programs for our young people.

"I was inspired by my father, Bishop R.W. Harris. He actually marched [in] the March on Washington in 1963 and spoke of how significant it was, and how great it felt to be involved and making a change for African-Americans, just for us to be able to have the right to vote. To know all that was suffered by my people fighting for that right. I wanted to be able to take advantage of that and make something of all that work, hard sweat and tears people put forth so we could have that right."

-- OLIVIA WINSLOW

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