A record number of openly LGBTQ candidates won the midterm race in 2022.
Mark Lennihan / AP
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Mark Lennihan / AP
A record number of openly LGBTQ candidates won the midterm race in 2022.
Mark Lennihan / AP
The 2022 midterm elections have made history with the most wins going to openly LGBTQ candidates. At least 340 candidates won their race, beating the previous record of 336 in 2020. This year also saw 678 LGBTQ candidates – the most ever – in the general election vote.
Since the Victory Fund began operating in 1991, it has supported LGBTQ candidates to run for office – from helping train people how to campaign and what to do after winning, to providing provide a network of LGBTQ elected representatives to learn from.
This election, the foundation endorsed more than 500 candidates, Victory Vice President of Political Programs Sean Meloy told NPR. The most it has confirmed before is around 300.
“Usually, when someone enters [office], they don’t pull the ladder up later,” he said of the LGBTQ community. They’ll say, ‘Hey, who’s next? Who will replace me? Who else can I invite to join me? ‘ I don’t think it’s a coincidence that we have more LGBTQ candidates running than ever before at the same time that we have the most LGBTQ people in office,” a number he said is more than 1,000.
This year saw many candidates running for office who were underrepresented in the already underrepresented LGBTQ community. “People of color, transgender people and non-binary people,” he said. “And in places where we need those voices, and having an LGBTQ person come forward to run – and then hope to win – helps change hearts and minds.”
There are notable firsts in these elections
There are some notable firsts among the midterm winners. The country elected its first openly lesbian governors, with Maura Healey in Massachusetts and Tina Kotek in Oregon. In Connecticut, Erick Russell became the first black LGBTQ person elected to statewide office in US history. James Roesener of New Hampshire is now the first transgender person elected to any US state legislature.
Zooey Zephyr, who runs for the Montana House of Representatives, will be the first openly transgender person in the state legislature. She won with almost 80% of the votes, according to Ballotpedia.org.
“I have always hesitated to call an election historic, because attacks on human rights, education, health, public lands, unions, etc. are permanent,” Zephyr told NPR. “Every election demands our attention because there is always something important worth fighting for and if we don’t fight hard, there are always groups waiting to take our rights away. “
“I think the way that attacks on lgbtq people have increased over the past year have served as a reminder that lgbtq people need to stay in the room where the law is being drafted,” she continued. . “More than 300 anti-LGBTQ people parts of the law were introduced last year, more than half of which specifically target transgender people. ”
That’s no cliché, says Zephyr, “but representation matters.” Meloy also describes how important it is for members of the exotic community to be in the room where decisions are made.
“Until people in Montana and so many other places see LGBTQ people in office, they will continue to beat us and they will continue to […] legitimately attacked us,” he said. We will become an amorphous enemy, as opposed to a smiling face sitting next to them. “
Meloy said their candidates have stepped up because there has never been an LGBTQ person able to look a person in the eye, such that the person may be passing a law that cuts support for those who don’t. homeless people who are disproportionately LGBTQ youth.
Alaska voted in its first three LGBTQ politicians to the state legislature: Ashley Carrick for House of Representatives District 35, Jennie Armstrong for House District 16 and Andrew Gray for District 20.
Ashley Carrick, a bisexual woman, tells NPR she doesn’t run because she’s LGBT, but she To be LGBT, and that kind of representation is long overdue in Alaska.
“That is the view I carry with me as I look to a future for our state where we promote the long-term best interests of Alaska and its people,” she said.
“I’m proud that Alaska has gone from being one of three states that have never elected to represent an LGBTQ+ state to now having three of us elected at the same time,” Armstrong told NPR. “I feel incredibly encouraged that my Alaskans support so many candidates who will fight to protect reproductive health care, repel attacks on LGBTQ+ youth, and support building building an inclusive economy where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.”
She also expressed gratitude to the late State Senator Johnny Ellis, and honored the sacrifice he made by remaining closed for decades in the state legislature – a reminder of How acceptance in America has changed.
Are they qualified to represent their constituents
Members of the LGBTQ community are uniquely qualified to represent their constituents, Meloy said.
“We intersect with every other community,” he said. “We have millennials, we have scientists, we have union members, we have teachers, and we have people from all ages and all demographics.”
He describes LGBTQ people as bringing a new and unique perspective to helping our government look like the people they want to represent, and their belief in the fundamental right to privacy represents all of that. whatever they are after.
“They have to know when to be safe for themselves in a lot of places,” he said. “I think that gives an understanding of their community, and I also think it gives a degree of empathy to others who have been forgotten or actively attacked by the government.”
The way forward
To achieve fair representation, the United States needs to elect more than 35,000 won According to Victory Fund, adding LGBTQ people to the office.
Meloy says that Millennials and especially Gen Z are identifying as LGBTQ to a degree never seen before. The reality, he said, could mean that some gaps will naturally be filled as younger generations run for office.
As LGBTQ people win elections, more community members follow them, Meloy added. He hopes that the election of James Roesener in New Hampshire, who has just become the first transgender person elected to the state legislature, will inspire other transgender men to run for office. He cited an increase in female transgender candidates after Virginia State Representative Danica Roem won her race in 2017.
“I think that shows it’s entirely possible, doesn’t it? And so many underrepresented people in government – women, young people, people of color, LGBTQ people, people with disabilities – they are constantly being marginalized. say, ‘Oh, you can’t do it […] because it wasn’t done,” he said. So breaking that barrier makes the argument – ‘No.’ That’s a huge starting point. “
Proof that anti-transgender platforms often fail
Erin Reed, a gay content creator and legislative researcher who shares LGBTQ news, noted that not only were many LGBTQ candidates elected, but many voters rejected these opinions. oppose transgender.
“Losing anti-transgender candidates from the school board level to the state level sends a clear message that running for hate is not a strategic strategy,” Reed told NPR. win. “So a lot of the candidates thought they could count on beating the transgenders to get an easy win, and they let election night down.”
Reed said this will not prevent attacks on transgender people. “I predict 2023 will be the worst year for anti-transgender legislation ever,” Reed said. “But it sends a clear message that voters are not swayed by anti-transgender legislation.”
