John,
This weekend, I was so honored to be named as a Lifetime Achievement inductee and I am thrilled to join the 20 other inductees of the Founding Class in the LGBTQ Victory Hall of Fame. As I listened to the stories of these trailblazers, I was struck by how far the LGBTQ community has come – and how much Victory Fund has done to further LGBTQ equality.
A few years before Victory Fund was founded, we held a gathering of nearly every LGBTQ elected official in the world. Not the United States – the world. And it was only a couple dozen people. It was really more of a support group than a conference.
At that time, running as an out candidate meant you would probably make state, national, or international headlines – even for the most local of seats – and that spotlight created a fear that often prevented candidates from coming out, or from running at all.
But there is a clear pivot point in our political history. We reached a moment when the perfect confluence of advocates, political leaders, and funders came together determined to grow our representation in government. That was 30 years ago, and it was the founding of Victory Fund.
Since then, Victory Fund has made enormous strides and shattered lavender ceilings. Help Victory Fund ensure they can continue supporting out candidates like me with a generous donation today.
In 1991, I was on the Dane County Board of Supervisors and considering a run for the Wisconsin State Assembly. Only a handful of LGBTQ people had ever won state legislative seats and never in Wisconsin. I became one of Victory Fund’s earliest candidates – and an early success story.
Back then, we didn’t have ActBlue or internet donations, so I would receive from Victory Fund an envelope full of checks from people across the nation. People who didn’t know me well or have ties to Wisconsin, but who wanted to support an LGBTQ person running for elected office.
Knowing I had dedicated supporters like that gave me a sense of power – power in what my race meant for people in the community, but also first-hand knowledge of the emerging power of Victory Fund, and its ability to impact races that would transform America.
This pattern repeated itself in my successful races for U.S. Congress and then the U.S. Senate, but it wasn't just me... dozens, and then hundreds of LGBTQ candidates benefited from the campaign and fundraising support provided by Victory Fund.
Thirty years later, Victory Fund is still empowering candidates and helping them win. It’s essential that we keep working – and keep winning! Will you donate to Victory Fund today to ensure continued LGBTQ political power?
Today, we have nearly 1,000 out LGBTQ elected officials nationwide – members of Congress, governors, big-city mayors, state legislative leaders. I know from personal experience that each one of these elected officials drives forward equality in ways small and large. Behind-the-scenes and from the bully pulpits.
I remember the impact of quiet conversations with colleagues, like how I helped then-Senator Jeff Flake come to support an inclusive employment nondiscrimination act by connecting him with a mutual friend of ours who has a transgender son.
Or more publicly, how in hearing after hearing, across several presidential administrations, I forced acknowledgement of health disparities impacting the LGBTQ community, leading to multiple efforts to name, quantify, and address those health disparities and inequities.
That impact is what makes me proud to be one of Victory Fund’s closest friends and biggest supporters. It is what makes me proud to be part of LGBTQ political history and to be the Lifetime Achievement Inductee to the LGBTQ Victory Hall of Fame.
Together, we have accomplished so much over the last 30 years, and I can’t wait to be part of what comes next. Help power 30 more years of LGBTQ political power with a donation today.
Tammy Baldwin
U.S. Senator, Wisconsin
