Lulu Seikaly is running for U.S. Congressional District 3, covering a portion of North Texas. Before Lulu filed to run for office, she worked as an labor and employment lawyer, fighting for her clients. In fact, when the Muslim ban was put in place by the current White House administration, she went to the nearest airport with her laptop ready to help in any way she could. Although Lulu has put her legal career on pause following her primary election win, she is not done fighting for others. Lulu wants to advocate for her community as an elected official like she has advocated for her clients as a lawyer.
Lulu was born in Northern Virginia but quickly moved to North Texas when she was a year and a half. Both of her parents are immigrants from Lebanon who sought refuge in the United States, fleeing the Lebanese Civil War. As a first-generation American, Lulu felt at home in North Texas where she was raised in a culturally diverse environment. Her parents brought Lebanon to Texas, giving their children the “American Dream” opportunity while still infusing Lebanese culture. Lulu credits her parents with providing her the best of both worlds.
Lulu looks up to her parents, especially her father. Lulu’s dad, a pediatric specialist, worked his way through medical school while Lulu’s mom received her nursing degree. Her father was so grateful to North Texas for accepting and educating his family that he wanted to give back. Lulu’s dad impressed upon Lulu the importance of being service oriented. This left a lasting impact on Lulu, gearing her towards public office.
One of the most critical issues facing North Texas is a lack of affordable healthcare. Lulu has witnessed healthcare through the eyes of medical professionals given that her father is a physician and her mother is a nurse. Growing up, Lulu saw her parents be forced to spend more time in the day fighting with insurance companies than actually seeing patients. Lulu wants to maintain a high quality level of healthcare but make it more affordable and accessible. Additionally, Lulu wants to emphasize the validity of the healthcare profession. During the era of COVID-19, when medical professionals are doubted now more than ever, Lulu wants to limit the discrepancy of who listens to experts and who doesn’t.
Not only has COVID impacted Lulu’s campaign platform but it has also challenged how she shares her message. To prevent the transmission of Coronavirus, Lulu has adapted by shifting her campaign to a virtual forum. She has kept her schedule packed with online discussions, informative panels, and virtual town halls. She wants to continue listening to constituents in the safest way possible.
Above all, Lulu’s greatest accomplishment to come from her campaign is the impact she has made on other young women. More particularly, Lulu is motivated by the wave of young, Middle Eastern women who have reached out to her thanking her for being a role model. Lulu said, “[b]eing able to inspire young women who look like me has been pretty remarkable.” Lulu herself was inspired by Lillian Salerno, a former Congressional candidate for District 32 (check out our article about Lillian here). Lulu thanks Lillian for being her mentor during the campaign. “That is the power of women lifting other women up,” Lulu says.
To learn more about Lulu’s campaign, please visit www.lulufortexas.com.
