Press Release

Gay candidates advance across the country

Wed, Sep 16th 2009, 09:57

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Denis Dison (202) 842-7308, denis.dison@victoryfund.org

Washington, D.C.—Nearly a dozen openly gay and lesbian candidates in three states faced primary elections Tuesday, with eight advancing to general elections this November.

In New York City, four Victory Fund-backed candidates prevailed in their decisive Democratic primary races for city council, including Speaker Christine Quinn .  James Van Bramer , Danny Dromm , and Rosie Mendez , who are heavily favored to win in the general election this November, will join Speaker Quinn, doubling LGBT representation on the council.
 
Further upstate in Rochester, city council candidate Matt Haag could become the third openly gay man in a row to occupy the seat he’s running for, having earned the Democratic nomination last night.  Barbara Smith earned another term on the Albany City Council, handily defeating her challenger.
 
In Massachusetts, Amaad Rivera advanced to the general election for the Springfield City Council and was the top vote-getter in his race.
 
Maplewood, Minn. City Council candidate James Llanas advanced to the general election in November. He will be one of four candidates vying for two seats.
 
Chuck Wolfe, president and CEO of the Victory Fund, said the wins send an important message about the willingness of LGBT Americans to serve their country:  “These candidates are winning because of their honesty about themselves, not in spite of it.  Voters care about what candidates plan to do for them, about who’s ready to fight for them.  And when they see out candidates stepping up and taking on the challenge of running for office as openly gay or lesbian, I think they realize this person is perhaps a little more committed than most.”
 
For a full list of the Victory Fund’s currently endorsed candidates, go to www.victoryfund.org

The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund is the only national organization dedicated to growing the number of openly lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender elected officials at all levels of government.  Today, more than 450 LGBT elected officials are serving, up from just 49 when the Victory Fund was founded in 1991.