Drop your political preferences at the door, and take a second to give some snaps to the three transgender women who made herstory happen in last night’s elections. Danica Roem, Andrea Jenkins, and Lisa Middleton all made groundbreaking strides in increasing representation for women and for transgender people.
Whether you bleed red or blue, it’s apparent that females in politics lack representation on both sides of the aisle. And that lack of visibility is even more painfully obvious when you look for LGBTQ folks or people of color in office. This lack of diversity is not a partisan issue, it’s one which transcends the political divide. When you have a disproportionate share of one sub category leading a nation (yea, I’m looking at you cis white men), you get legislation that doesn’t reflect the needs and desires of the entire population. Politicians enact the laws and policies that govern people’s everyday lives, whether they were represented in the decision making process or not. But last night’s victories mean that voters are recognizing these discrepancies and taking action to fix them.
So who exactly are these three groundbreaking women? And what pushed their campaigns to victory?
Danica Roem stole a Virginia state legislature seat from a 13 term incumbent who gained national attention for introducing “bathroom bill” and dubbing himself the state’s “chief homophobe”. Roem was previously a journalist and entered the race focusing on heavy traffic and other local issues. She spoke several times about her identity as a transgender women, but said she didn’t want the race to be about that. Instead, she gained support by focusing on the issues and connecting with constituent’s immediate concerns.
Andrea Jenkins was voted into a spot on the Minneapolis City Council. She was the first openly transgender black woman to EVER be elected to a political office in the United States. This was a huge win for someone historically marginalized at every intersection of her identity, gender, race, and sexual orientation. Jenkins is a former policy aide to other council members in the same area. She gained popularity for working to address youth violence and develop neighborhoods in Minneapolis.
Lisa Middleton won a seat on the Palm Springs City Council. That made her the first transgender person to be elected to a non-judicial office in the state of California. Middleton has served her community before on the planning commission and in other neighborhood groups. She ran on the platforms of helping the homeless and increasing the use of renewable energy. Her historic run gained the attention and endorsement of former senator Barbara Boxer.
It remains to be seen what these women will do to advance visibility for females and LGBTQ people in their communities, but their historic runs have sent a message to the nation. Roem, Jenkins, and Middleton pave the way for other transgender women to follow them by winning leadership positions in politics and elsewhere. Women are fighting for equality and to make their voices heard, and they’re winning, more and more in every election. That’s something we should all be celebrating.