We've heard a lot of whining from Democrats in recent days about "Black representation" in Congress. As always, Democrats define "Black representation" in whatever way happens to suit them best at any given moment. That's why CNN can say with a straight face that Rep. Steve Cohen, an old White man, is "Black representation" in Tennessee, but electing Black Republican Charlotte Bergmann is still, somehow, racist and not representation. In the same breath, they'll ignore that South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, also a Black Republican, has been in Congress for more than a decade after winning statewide races without gerrymandered minority-majority districts.
And when they have a chance to elect a Black woman to office, as they did with Winsome Sears in Virginia last year, the Democrats went with the rich White woman instead. It's almost like they don't actually care about representation, so long as Democrats are the ones holding the seats.
If they truly cared about "Black representation" in Congress, Democrats would be more vocal about Florida Rep. Frederica Wilson, who has reportedly been MIA since April 17.
🚨Missing House Democrat Hasn’t Voted Since April 17.
— Alladdin (@Alladdin1983) May 14, 2026
It’s been nearly a month since Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) cast a vote in the House of Representatives, yet there’s been no word on her whereabouts.
The 83-year-old has missed 43 straight votes as of Wednesday,… pic.twitter.com/K6agr0KXWV
One of Wilson's social media accounts has reportedly been recycling old pictures of her as well.
Wilson represents FL-24, an urban district and one of Florida's "majority-minority" districts, with roughly 70-80 percent Black or Hispanic voters. Even with Florida's recent redistricting, FL-24 remains a "majority-minority" district and Wilson is, reportedly, running for reelection this year.
But why isn't Wilson showing up to vote? What is going on with her? The voters of FL-24 elected Wilson to go to Congress and vote on their behalf and — as of Sunday — it will be one month since she's done her job.
According to Axios, Wilson is recovering after "major eye surgery," and they confirmed that Wilson is seeking reelection. That's at least according to Florida state Sen. Shevrin Jones, who is from Wilson's district. Wilson reportedly attended a fundraiser on Monday, and an anonymous source explained her absence to Axios by saying, "She shows up when she wants to and when she has to. She's a force of nature."
That's all well and good, but her job — the literal work she was elected for — is to go to Congress and cast votes. For whatever reason, Wilson has not done that in over a month. It was only in the last few days that Democrats have even discussed why FL-24's voters weren't being represented in Congress.
It's not the first time Democrats have done things like this. In 2009, Senator Ted Kennedy stopped voting in the Senate amid his battle with glioblastoma, a form of brain cancer. By June of that year, he hadn't cast a vote in three months and he died in August, 2009. In 2023, Senator Dianne Feinstein had health issues that led her to miss votes and required assistance voting 'aye' on legislation, as she seemed "confused" during committee meetings and votes. Both Kennedy and Feinstein represented Black voters in Massachusetts and California, respectively. Yet — like Wilson — they went weeks and months without doing their jobs.
That means their voters lacked representation in Congress, and I thought that mattered to Democrats. If it does, they sure have a funny way of showing it.
