Cori Anika Bushย is the first African America woman electedย to represent Missouri’s 1st Congressional District in theย U.S. House of Representatives. She is also a single parent, a registered nurse, a former pastor, an activist, and a community organizer.
Bush was born July 21, 1976 and raised inย St. Louis, Missouri, the daughter of Errol S. Bush, an alderman and former mayor of Northwoods, a small city in St. Louis County and Barbara J. Bush a technical analyst. Bush has a brother, Perry and a sister, Kelli. She graduated from Cardinal Ritter College Prep High School in 1995 and attended Harris-Stowe State University for one year, 1995 to 1996. Bush also attended Lutheran School of Nursing from 2005 to 2008 where she received a diploma in Registered Nursing.
Bush began her career as a preschool teacher and eventually become the schoolโs assistant director. In 2011, she established the Kingdom Embassy International Church inย St. Louis, Missouri serving as its pastor until 2014. Bush also worked as a registered nurse, at the SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital from 2008 until 2011. In 2013, Bush became a Nursing Supervisor, at Hopewell Health Center until 2020. Since 2015 Bush has also served as Nonviolence 365 Ambassador for The King Center and the Co-Director of the Truth Telling Project.
Bushโs interest in politics began through her work with the Ferguson movement as a protester, clergy, medic, and victim of police assault. In 2016 that work led her to become a candidate for theย U.S Senate but she was defeated in the Democratic primary in August. The following year she was elected the first vice-chairperson of the Missouri Democratic Party Progressive Caucus and was an organizer of the St. Louis protests known as โExpect Us.โ
In 2018 Bush was a Democratic candidate forย Missouri’s 1st Congressional District, however, she was once again defeated in the Democratic primary inย August, 2018. Nevertheless, on August 4, 2020, ran again, defeating William Lacy Clay, Jr., theย 10-term incumbent in the Democratic Primary. This was a major upset as Clay and his father, William Lacy Clay, Sr., had represented the district since 1969. Bush won in the general election onย November 3, 2020 and assumed office on January 4, 2021.
Bushโs campaign was featured in the award-winning documentaryย Knock Down the House (2019) that followed her and three other Congress candidates, Amy Vilela, Paula Jean Swearingen, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez through their election journey to pull off the most stunning political upsets in recent American history. Bush has received many distinguished awards and honors including the 2018 โCommunity Activistโ award from the Missouri Association of Black Ministers. She was honored as an โUnsung Human Rights Sheroโ by the St. Louis Coalition for Human Rights in 2017, in 2016 the Delux Magazine โPower 100โ Award and named one of the โTop 50 Women of St. Louisโ by Gazelle Magazine and honored as a recipient of the 2015 โWoman of Courageโ Award from the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation. Bush has also been a radio host of Grounded on BlogTalkRadio, the Civics Chair for Better Family Life Incorporated, a member of the Fergusonโs Womenโs Caucus, and the organizer of Michael Brown, Sr.โs Chosen for Change Foundation.
Bush lives inย St. Louis, Missouri. She is a divorced mother of two children, son Zion and daughter, Angel.
