Castor, 50, also thanked her staff, including interns that she referred to as “something like the U.N.” since so many of them are from so many different places around the globe. One of those interns is Joselyne Nsanza, a Rwandan student at the University of Tampa majoring in political science.
The 22-year-old was clutching a homemade electoral college map, and she told CL that working for the Castor office has been a great experience. Watching this general election was different from her 2012 experience, when she was going to high school in Alabama.
“Alabama is definitely more Republican,” Nsanza said, pointing around the room. “This is much, much different.”
Castor was not shy when she told CL what she hopes to accomplish in Congress, and was so confident in the outcome that she referred to "President Clinton.".
“The Congress needs to get right to work with President Clinton on things like immigration reform and a path to citizenship,” Castor said. “We need a more modern workplace, paid family leave and more help for caregivers.” She said she’ll also be laser-focused on boosting wages in Tampa Bay. As the television pundits reported on election returns showing a tight race between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the talk shifted toward that race.
“I'm hopeful,” Castor said. “One candidate has been so divisive. We need to get back and continue the good work of President Obama, who will go down as a president who took us from the depths of a recession to a more stable economy.”
This article appears in Nov 3-10, 2016.