The 2020 US elections have seen a record number of victorious LGBTQ+ candidates as over 220 have now been elected, with that number expected to rise as counting continues. According to the LGBTQ Victory Fund, there were 574 LGBTQ+ candidates on the ballots, up from 432 since the last election. This year’s pool of LGBTQ+ candidates was also more racially diverse than any previous election. Andrew Reynolds, a Princeton researcher studying LGBTQ+ political representation, told NBC News: “The really exciting thing about the election was not the increase [in LGBTQ+ candidates] – it was who is getting elected [i.e. queer women, trans people and people of colour]. You are seeing a different type of voice emerging”.
Notable victories include that of Sarah McBride, the new senator for Delaware who made history as the first out trans legislator in federal office and the highest ranking trans politician in the US. Mauree Turner, 27, also became first non-binary lawmaker in US history after they won an election for the state house in Oklahoma’s 88th District. They received over 70% of the vote against Republican candidate Kelly Barlean.
Annise Parker, president and CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Fund, said: “LGBTQ+ candidates made historic inroads in state legislatures across the country, winning in states and chambers where we never have before…As our nation grapples with racism, police brutality and a pandemic that disproportionately affects people of colour and LGBTQ+ people, these are the voices that can pull us from the brink and toward a more united and fair society.”
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