Hi — it’s U.S. Congressman Mark Takano.

This Pride Month, I wanted to tell you a little about my story and my first race for Congress.

When I ran for Congress in the 1990s, I was publicly outed as gay by bigoted Republicans and made the target of homophobic attack ads.

I would go on to lose that race by more than 18% — but I didn’t stop fighting.

In 2012, I ran again and won by 19%, becoming the first openly gay person of color to serve in Congress. Something I’m still deeply proud of to this day.

Now, a little over three decades since my first campaign, I’m proud and honored to be Chair of the Equality Caucus, serving alongside a historic number of 13 openly LGBTQ members of Congress.

Together, we are fighting every day in Congress to protect LGBTQ+ Americans and our rights.

This Pride Month, please join me in the fight to protect LGBTQ+ rights and help elect pro-equality Democrats by splitting a donation between my campaign and Hold the Line now.

While I’m proud to celebrate how far we’ve come since my first run for Congress, the fight is still ongoing. And LGBTQ+ rights are increasingly under attack by Republicans.

That is why we fight every Congress to pass the Equality Act, which would end all LGBTQ discrimination across our nation — a law that 75 percent of Americans support, including a majority of Republicans and Independents.

Despite that truth, bigoted Republicans continue to push an anti-LGBTQ, far-right agenda: from anti-trans discrimination to begging the Supreme Court to overturn same-sex marriage to cutting life-saving Medicaid services for HIV that impact the most vulnerable in our community.

Just in 2025 alone, over 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced, and that’s not including the ongoing attacks from the Trump administration.

But, as Chair of the Equality Caucus, I’m leading the charge in Congress to protect LGBTQ+ rights and fight back against these disgraceful and bigoted Republican attacks.

So, in honor of Pride Month, will you join me in fighting back against bigoted Republican attacks and elect pro-equality Democrats who will protect LGBTQ+ rights? Please, split a donation between my campaign and Hold the Line now to join the fight.

Thank you, and happy Pride Month.

U.S. Congressman and Chair of the Equality Caucus, Mark Takano