Washington, DC — In recognition of Black History Month, Mayor Annise Parker, President & CEO of LGBTQ Victory Fund, released the following statement:
"At the heart of it, representation is about getting diverse voices in the room. Black and LGBTQ leaders have historically been excluded from participating in the policy-making process as decisions about their basic freedoms and rights were made. While it is encouraging to see a historic number of Black out LGBTQ leaders and candidates representing our community across the country, we still have a long way to go for true, equitable representation. The fight must continue. LGBTQ Victory Fund is proud to continue cultivating a diverse pipeline of candidates and leaders until we reach this parity."
There are currently just 100 Black out LGBTQ elected officials in the United States ( outforamerica.org/ ). There are no Black out LGBTQ elected officials in 18 states: Alabama, Connecticut, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Utah and Vermont.
To date in 2022, LGBTQ Victory fund has endorsed 23 Black out LGBTQ candidates.
Endorsed Candidates for Federal Office:
Malcolm Kenyatta, United States Senate. Malcolm will be the first out gay man and first LGBTQ person of color ever elected to the United States Senate.
Michele Rayner, U.S. House of Representatives. Michele will be the first out LGBTQ member of Congress from Florida.
Mondaire Jones, U.S. House of Representatives. Mondaire will continue serving as one of the first two Black gay men elected to Congress.
Ritchie Torres, U.S. House of Representatives. Ritchie was the first out LGBTQ Afro-Latinx person elected to the U.S. Congress.
Endorsed Candidates for State Office:
G. Helen Whitener, Washington State Supreme Court. Helen will continue to bring important representation to the Washington Supreme Court.
Gabriel Acevero, Maryland House of Delegates. Gabriel was the first out gay Afro-Latinx man elected to the Maryland General Assembly.
Jabari Brisport, New York State Senate. Jabari was the first out LGBTQ person of color elected to the New York State Legislature.
Jolanda Jones, Texas House of Representatives. Jolanda will be one of the first out LGBTQ Black members of the Texas legislature.
Keturah Herron, Kentucky House of Representatives. Keturah will be the first out LGBTQ person ever elected to the Kentucky state House.
Kim Jackson, Georgia state Senate. Kim was the first out LGBTQ member of the Georgia state Senate.
Lamont Robinson, Illinois House of Representatives. Lamont is the only out LGBTQ man and LGBTQ person of color serving in the Illinois General Assembly.
LaWana Slack-Mayfield, Charlotte City Council. LaWana will be the first out LGBTQ person elected citywide in Charlotte.
Marie Pinkney, Delaware state Senate. Marie was the first Black out lesbian in the Delaware state Senate.
Mary Washington, Maryland state Senate. Mary was the first out LGBTQ person elected to the Maryland state Senate.
Mike Simmons, Illinois state Senate. Mike is the first out LGBTQ person to serve in the Illinois sate Senate.
Park Cannon, Georgia House of Representatives. Park is one of only three out LGBTQ women serving in the Georgia House of Representatives.
Pat Spearman, Mayor of North Las Vegas. Pat will be the first out LGBTQ mayor of North Las Vegas.
Shannon Baldwin, Harris County Criminal Court Judge. Shannon will continue to be a critical LGBTQ voice on the Harris County bench.
Shevrin Jones, Florida state Senate. Shevrin is the first out LGBTQ state Senator in Florida.
Tiara Mack, Rhode Island state Senate. Tiara was the first out queer Black woman elected to the Rhode Island legislature.
Tonya Parker, 116th District Court. Tonya was the first out LGBTQ Black elected official in the state of Texas.
Venton Jones, Texas House of Representatives. Venton will be one of the first out LGBTQ Black members of the Texas legislature.
Vernetta Alston, North Carolina House of Representatives. Vernetta will continue to be a voice for social justice in the North Carolina State House.
More information about all of Victory Fund's endorsed candidates is available atvictoryfund.org/ourcandidates. Since 1991, Victory Fund has helped thousands of openly LGBTQ candidates win local, state and federal elections.
LGBTQ Victory Fund
LGBTQ Victory Fund works to achieve and sustain equality by increasing the number of openly LGBTQ elected officials at all levels of government while ensuring they reflect the diversity of those they serve.
victoryfund.org
