BY LYNNE INOUYE AND SYDNEY WESCHCKE
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF IN TRAINING AND STAFF WRITER
During this year’s election, record numbers of LGBTQ+ people ran for office, with 220 elected out of the 600 potential LGBTQ+ candidates. Among these 220 representatives, there were historic numbers of transgender and BIPOC (Black and Indigenous people of color), too. “I am hopeful that tonight’s result can send a potentially lifesaving message to a young trans kid,” said Sarah McBride, the first openly trans person elected as a state senator in Delaware. Once she’s sworn in, she’ll become the highest-ranking transgender person in the government.
Other than Sarah McBride, notable officials include Stephanie Byers, who will join the Kansas House of Representatives. She’s the first openly transgender official in Kansas, as well as the first Native American trans person elected. Additionally, Shevrin Jones will be the first LGBTQ+ Florida state senator, and Michele Rayner is going to be the first LGBTQ+ woman of color in the Florida state House. Another person, Mauree Turner, will be the first openly nonbinary person ever elected to a state legislature in the United States, after winning their House election in Oklahoma.
All these victories bring hope for better representation in our government, as well. As GLAAD (The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said on election night, “Tonight’s wins for LGBTQ people of color and transgender Americans across the country are historic and long overdue. Their victories represent a leap forward for LGBTQ acceptance and a demand for more of the progress and equality that their very presence demonstrates.”
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