A Virginia politician made history becoming the first openly transgender person to be elected to any state legislature in the United States.
Danica Roem, 32, just won a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates, defeating Republican incumbent Robert Marshall in the 13th District. Roem, a former journalist, won a surprise victory in the Democratic primary in June.
She took on the ultra-conservative Marshall, who has been in office for more than 20 years and who has taken anti-LGBT stances. For instance, he proposed the state’s (ultimately failed) “bathroom bill” that would have required transgender people to use the public restroom that corresponds with the sex on their birth certificate.
“Discrimination is a disqualifier”, a jubilant Roem said as her margin of victory became clear. “This is about the people of the 13th District disregarding fear tactics, disregarding phobias . . . where we celebrate you because of who you are, not despite it”.
Congrats Danica!
2017 is considered an off-year in the United States for elections. Two of the fifty states elected their governors -- New Jersey and Virginia. In addition, there were many local elections, including Mayor of New York City. All in all, it was a landslide for the Democratic Party, which did better than expected. In one year, the United States will elect a new legislature, including all members of the House of Representatives, currently controlled by Speaker Paul Ryan and the Republican Party. If last night's election is any indication, the Democrats can expect to take control of the House of Representatives, and with it, the ability to have more control over federal spending and, more importantly, the ability to subpoena, investigate, and ultimately impeach the corrupt and criminal Presidential of Donald J. Trump.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Eddi!
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