The Agenda: The Nefarious Plot to hold public office [[link removed]][link removed] [[link removed]] [link removed] [[link removed]] [link removed] [[link removed]] [link removed] [[link removed]]
Five Stories You Should Know About
1. Victory in Kentucky: Keturah Herron Makes LGBTQ History!
Primary season has begun! In Texas, there was a historic number of LGTBQ candidates on the ballot [[link removed]] . By the end of the night, 14 Victory Fund endorsed-candidates won their elections and four advanced to a runoff. 27 LGBTQ candidates won their races overall [[link removed]] !
Venton Jones ( @ventonjones [[link removed]] ) advanced to a runoff to represent the 100th House District. When Venton wins in November, he’ll be one of the first out LGBTQ Black men ever elected to the state legislature [[link removed]] , and be the first out LGBTQ Black state legislator in the U.S. who is openly HIV-positive.
Jolanda Jones ( @JonesJolanda [[link removed]] ) , who is also running for the state House, advanced to a runoff election as well [[link removed]] . She would be the first out LGBTQ Black woman elected to the state legislature. Jolanda received the most votes in this primary and will be heading to the runoff with a substantial lead! [[link removed]]
The Texas runoffs will take place on May 24th.
That 27 out LGBTQ candidates [[link removed]] – a record-breaking number [[link removed]] - won their primaries is a promising sign to increase efforts to combat the blatant homophobia and transphobia occurring in legislatures around the country [[link removed]] .
2. Big Wins in Vermont!
Four LGBTQ Candidates were on the ballot in Vermont on Tuesday – and all of them won!
Joe Magee ( @joemageebtv [[link removed]] ) won his race for Burlington City Council against Christopher-Aaron Felker. Felker, a gay man, was pressured to drop out of the race after deleted tweets resurfaced which showed him using hateful language when responding to a trans person [[link removed]] .
Additionally, Marybeth Lennox-Levins won her race for Rutland City Board of School Commissioners [[link removed]] .
And two LGBTQ candidates for city council of Winooski won their elections [[link removed]] . Victory Fund endorsed candidates Auora Hurd and Thomas Renner received the two highest vote totals from Tuesday’s election [[link removed]] .
During a phone call to supporters on Tuesday night Thomas said, “I think that's going to give us a lot of good direction on how to make our city more equitable and just, on all different levels.”
[link removed] [[link removed]]
3. Keturah Herron Sworn In
On Monday, Keturah Herron ( @KeturahHerron [[link removed]] ) was sworn in as the first out LGBTQ state representative and only the third Black woman to serve in the Kentucky state house. [[link removed]]
During her first floor speech, Keturah said [[link removed]] , “It is an honor for the baton to be passed to me, to continue the work of service, justice, and creating a better commonwealth.”
Keturah is already hard at work representing the people of Louisville by voting to amend a harmful anti-abortion bill to allow exceptions for survivors of rape and incest [[link removed]] and working to keep local control in the Louisville Metro government. [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]]
4. SPOTLIGHT: Zooey Zephyr Hits the Campaign Trail
Spotlight Candidate Zooey Zephyr ( @ZoAndBehold [[link removed]] ) spoke with LGBTQ Nation about her campaign for the Montana state legislature [[link removed]] . Zooey will be the first trans person elected to the chamber in state history.
On the top of Zooey’s agenda is protection of trans people. She recalled how she felt compelled to run after testifying against an anti-trans sports bill that ultimately passed in 2021 [[link removed]] . This trend has continued across the country this year as Texas is now going after parents of trans kids [[link removed]] and Florida is enacting LGBTQ school curriculum limitations [[link removed]] .
Other issues that Zooey will champion are expansion of affordable housing, expansion of Medicaid, and increasing awareness and access to report victims of discrimination.
5. Women’s History Month: Celebrating Andrea Jenkins
Celebrate Women’s History Month by learning more about women LGBTQ political leaders. We will kick off this month by spotlighting Minneapolis City Council President, Andrea Jenkins ( @annapoetic [[link removed]] )!
Council President Jenkins has been serving in the Minneapolis city council since 2017 [[link removed]] , when she became the first out Black transgender woman to win elected office in the U.S. and the first out transgender woman elected to a major city’s council. In 2020, Andrea made national headlines again for her leadership in Minneapolis [[link removed]] following the killing of George Floyd. Earlier this year, Andrea became the first out transgender official to lead a U.S. city council [[link removed]] .
In December 2021, Andrea was inducted into the 2021 class of Victory Institute’s LGBTQ Victory Hall of Fame with other outstanding LGBTQ leaders [[link removed]] .
Learn more about Andrea and other LGBTQ women leaders at Pride and Progress [[link removed]] , the only comprehensive timeline covering LGBTQ political power.
[link removed] [[link removed]]
Paid for by LGBTQ Victory Fund. Your contribution may be used in connection with federal, state and local elections and be subject to federal, state and local laws. Contributions to LGBTQ Victory Fund are not tax deductible. Victory Fund members do not have governance participation rights.
LGBTQ Victory Fund is the political arm of the LGBTQ community. Since our founding in 1991, we’ve supported and elected LGBTQ candidates like U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin, Governors Jared Polis and Kate Brown and all nine LGBTQ members of U.S. Congress. We've boosted out candidates running for state and local government, including California Senate Pro Tem Toni Atkins, Florida Senator Shevrin Jones, Virginia Delegate Danica Roem, Colorado state Representative Leslie Herod, Pennsylvania state Representative Brian Sims, Hawaii state Representative Adrian Tam, Oklahoma Representative Mauree Turner, and so many more ( meet all of our current candidates here [[link removed]] )! We’ve shattered rainbow ceilings in all 50 states and broken election year records. You can power our work and the next Rainbow Wave with a donation today [[link removed]] !
This email was sent to [email protected]. Don't unsubscribe just yet - you can change how many & what type of emails you receive by updating your account here. [[link removed]] Unsubscribing will remove you from ALL Victory Fund email contact. If you believe you received this message in error or wish to no longer receive ANY email from us, please unsubscribe: [link removed] .
LGBTQ Victory Fund
1225 I Street NW, Suite 525
Washington, DC xxxxxx
United States