Karu F. Daniels
New York Daily News
Consider her a legislator for the modern ages.
A state senator took an unconventional, attention grabby approach to campaigning her constituents.
Tiara Mack, a Democrat representing District 6 in Rhode Island, posted a TikTok video of herself twerking upside down in a bikini, describing it as a “promised senator thirst trap at Block Island.”
“Vote Senator Mack” she said to the camera after letting it all hang out in the sun on Monday.
In another short clip (captured by the Baller Alert Instagram account), the self-described “queer educator” and “reproductive rights activist” asks, “How many nip slips am I allowed to get on the Fourth of July?”
“You already have three,” another woman shouted.
Social media users who were hot and bothered to see an elected politician in such a revealing way didn’t hold back with their thoughts about the barely-clad Mack.
And she had the time to respond to the haters.
The 28-year-old 2016 Brown University graduate posted a series of videos making funny facial expressions as she leaned into the backlash the twerking video ignited.
Rhode Island State Senator Tiara Mack (D) made this video encouraging people to vote for her. She also sponsored a bill for teaching kids “queer inclusive, pleasure-based sex ed” pic.twitter.com/835n4jS8LS
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) July 5, 2022
“I don’t ever wanna hear you complain about how ‘women aren’t respected in this country’ after posting this,” one commenter said.
She responded: “Honey baby. This ain’t it. Because I have an Ivy League degree and I’m a sitting state senator. It’s not about what I’m wearing. It’s not about what I’m doing. They won’t respect me regardless.”
“Do yall really be coming on the internet without knowing how to do a simple Google search?,” Mack sarcastically asked in another comment which erroneously referred to her as a U.S. senator. “I’m a state senator baby girl. The United States ain’t got nothing to do with me. She ain’t got nothing to do with me.”
In another, the Providence transplant (from North Carolina) poked fun at the grammar of the commenter who suggested that the TikTok video will have a negative impact on her in the voting booth. “I believe the word that you meant to use was re-elected. It won’t get be re-elected. And it probably will because my constituents freaking love that I’m a real person and fun and you know, not a robot.”
On Jan. 5, 2021, Mack — who believes “representation is important” – became the first openly LGBTQ Black person to assume office after being elected to the Rhode Island Senate with 60 percent of the vote.
Prior to her successful political debut, she served as the Youth Organizing Specialist at Planned Parenthood of Southern New England.
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