Good Luck Sarah!

"At the end of the day, I'm not running to be a transgender state senator, I'm running to be a senator who serves her community, I'm running to be a senator who fights for affordable health care, I'm running to be a senator who works to expand access to paid leave and reform our broken criminal justice system.  "Those will be my priorities."-Sarah McBride,  WDFL radio interview 

 It's primary election day in Delaware, and hopefully by the end of it we will be part of the way to seeing some trans political history being made.

When the polls open Democratic primary voters will have to choose who will be their standard bearer in the race to replace longtime state senator Harris McDowell (D-Wilmington), who retired last year after holding that heavily blue Wilmington area senate seat since 1976.

I'm hoping that when the votes are finished being counted later this evening, it will be Sarah McBride taking a giant political leap for transkind and winning this primary over Joseph McCole . 

The winner of this primary will take on the Republican nominee Steve Washington in the general election    Washington ran as an independent in the last cycle in this district in which 58.6% of the registered voters are Democrats to just 19% Republicans

No surprise he's already started deploying the down low transphobia with the 'family values' rhetoric.

Should McBride win tonight, she would not only move on for a shot at becoming the first out trans state senator, she'd also become the first out trans person to win a state senate legislative primary election. 

You know Sarah already has my TransGriot endorsement in this race along with the endorsement of the Victory Fund and several other organizations.

But it's now up to the voters of state senate District 1 to decide if that happens.


TransGriot Update: McBride won her primary with 93% of the votes cast.   She becomes the first out trans person to win a party primary for a state senate seat.  

The US Trans Caucus Meets!

Back on May 9, the US Trans Caucus got together via Zoom to discuss the changing landscape of American politics.

The US Trans Caucus is comprised of Minneapolis city councilmembers Andrea Jenkins and Philippe Cunningham, and state Reps Brianna Titone of Colorado, Reps Gerri Cannon and Lisa bunker of new Hampshire and Del Danica Roem of VA 

Here's the video of that historic meeting of out trans legislators moderated by Councilmember Jenkins.. 

Three Trans Peeps Running To Become Vermont Legislators

I've been saying for a while now that trans folks need to be on the legislative bodies that the local, state and national level writing the laws instead of being oppressed by them.

There are currently just 27 trans people across the United States who are elected public officials.

Four of them, VA Del Danica Roem,  CO Rep Brianna Titone, and NH Reps  Lisa Bunker and Gerri Cannon are state reps.  Roem made the history back in 2018 of being the first trans rep to be reelected to office.  Titone, the first out trans state rep elected west of the Mississippi River, is trying to replicate in Colorado what Roem accomplished and get reelected o her seat 

Titone faces the woman she beat by 439 votes, Vicki Pyne in a general election rematch.

In Delaware, Sarah McBride is making what she hopes will be a historic run for a state senate seat. 
She does have a Democratic primary opponent, and will need to clear that hurdle before getting to the general election.   If she is successful, she will become the first out trans person ever elected to a state senate seat in the US.

And yes, have to shout out Minneapolis councilmembers Andrea Jenkins and Phillipe Cunningham for being elected and serving together on the Minneapolis City Council.   It is a legislative body that in the wake of the George Floyd murder by cop, is getting more national attention lately for what they have decided to do what the council voted to do with their out of control police department.

Councilmembers Jenkins and Cunningham are n addition to being the first out African American trans people elected to any office and the first elected since Althea Garrison in 1990, are the first trans people ever elected to a large metro city council of over 250K population.

All of that to say that seeing trans people getting elected to office has not only motivated people to think about running for office at all levels of government (yeah I'm seriously considering it) , to actually handling their business and doing it.

In Vermont, three people inspired by Christine Hallquist's 2018 run for governor are stepping up to run in the August Democratic primaries for state rep in their local communities.  If they successfully get out of the primary elections and win in the general, they would become the first out trans folks elected as state legislators in Vermont.

In case you're wondering, the 150 seat Vermont House of Representatives chamber as of this writing has had a Democratic majority since 2004.   It currently stands at 95-43, with seven seats held by the Vermont Progressive  Party and five more by independents

Taylor Small of Winooski, is the health and wellness director of the Pride Center of Vermont.  She is running against incumbent Chittenden 6-7 rep Hal Coston and Jordan Matte in the Dem primary.  Small is focusing her campaign on public health and affordable housing

Ember Quinn is a substitute teacher running in Milton against Emily Hecker in the Democratic primary for the Chittenden 10 seat.   It has a Republican incumbent .Quinn's campaign focus is economic equity and LGBTQ education in public schools

Manchester business owner Jamie Dufour is taking on incumbent Kathleen James and Seth Bongartz for the Bennington 4 seat, and is focusing her on uplifting small business owners like herself.

While each of them would love to make that history, they stated they are in this race to help their potential constituents.   They are all proud trans women, but want voters to focus on the policy and not their trans status.

I hope that all of them win their primaries and the general on November 3 and they get to make that history.  I would love to see them taking the oath of office when the Vermont House convenes in 2021.

Rep Herod Drops Some Knowledge In The Colorado House

"To all of the young people who think that they have to choose between going to church or honoring who they are as a person - their sexual orientation or their gender expression - you don't have to. There are many churches who will welcome you with open arms. I as a Christian will welcome you with open arms."
-CO state Rep.  Leslie Herod 

I met this amazing woman several years ago through my interactions with the National Black Justice Coalition, and was pleased and proud when she was elected to the Colorado House back in the 2016 election cycle.

Herod also made some history when she did so as the first out Black lesbian legislator in Colorado history.

She's now in her second term as the rep for HD-8, and if you aren't aware of it,  Rep Leslie Herod (D-Denver)  is all that and five bags of chips.   Don't be surprised if you see her in a higher office someday

She took to the House floor to school some folks trying to use religious to fearmonger on HB19-1032, a comprehensive human sexuality education bill.

You can check out the link to her floor speech here.