Louise Slaughter's daughter reflects on her career while looking ahead to the next in line

ROCHESTER, NY (WHAM) - Tuesday night's swearing in of Congressman Joe Morelle was the passing of the torch.

He now holds the seat that belonged to Louise Slaughter for more than 30 years.

Her daughter admits Election Day was tough to get through this year. She's now reflecting on the legacy her mother leaves behind.

To many people, Slaughter was a leader who advocated for what she believed in. However, to Minerva, she was best knew as her mom.

"She started running for office when I was about six in 1971, so I really grew up with it," she explained.

Minerva later went on to work with her mom on her first campaign for congress. "We really worked night and day on the '86 campaign," she said.

She said Election Day this year was bittersweet "It was hard. It brought up a lot, as if she had passed away again," she said.

Congresswoman Slaughter spent more than 30 years representing the 25th Congressional District before passing away earlier this year.

"We felt like it was her seat, you know," she said.

In retrospect, she said she learned about her mom's dedication early on in life. "This was the woods, which is how my parents got involved in politics; they wanted to save the woods that were behind our house," she said, showing photographs to 13WHAM.

Slaughter would move from county to state to national politics, and the congressional seat she held for three decades is now changing hands to Joe Morelle.

"I don't want Joe to feel like he has to be in her shadow all the time, or reference her all the time. He's his own man," she said.

While the torch gets passed on, Louise Slaughter's memory lives in the moments she spent with family.

"I just liked being with my mom," her daughter said.