Having so many queer people in office can help shift the tide on some of our most pressing worries.
equality at the federal level. Today’s crop of local and state-level officials have the potential to hold political leaders accountable until the legislation has become law.
“Our elected officials are what we need to make progress,” said Annise Parker, current president and CEO of LGBTQ Victory Fund, former mayor of Houston, Texas, and former fellow of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics. “We’re always going to depend on allies to achieve equality, but it matters that we’re in the room too and we can talk about our own lives and our own lived experience.”Our newly elected officials will influence abortion rights at a critical moment.
“[LGBTQ+ people] see it in a broader contract than a woman’s right to make this decision,” Parker said, citing a 2003 casethat criminal punishment for consensual sexual acts was unconstitutional. “The right to privacy is bigger than that. The Supreme Court knocked down sodomy statutes, next we should look at Griswold [v. Connecticut]. That’s why a vast majority of LGBT folks believe a right to privacy is crucial.
“Cities are actually at the vanguard on climate issues,” she said. “Legislatures pass bills on the energy mix in your state, but cities can take direct action.”A lot, hopefully. But LGBTQ+ elected officials will also need to contend with differences in their own political parties. In fact, George Santos is a gay Republican who ran and won his race in New York’s Third District against another gay candidate, Robert Zimmerman,.
“There are very few places where people can flip a seat and make a difference,” Parker said. “This is about being in a chamber and working long term to build the kind of trust where you can have professional conversations with people you disagree on serious issues.”
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