‘Many, myself included, have argued against voting for the worst offenders on this list even where it means a Republican takes the seat. A Republican victory costs the community one seat for one term. A worst-offender victory teaches the party’s consultant class, the Searchlights and Third Ways, that throwing transgender people under the bus is a winning strategy, and that lesson would be applied everywhere until the Democratic Party goes the way of Labour. One seat can be won back. A party cannot.’
Say it louder! oh my God, it is so refreshing to see actual political analysis in this country. Thank you for having a spine and a voice, Erin. We all owe you much.
I’d also add Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota to that list given that she has repeatedly voted for various NDAA despite them being loaded with anti trans provisions. She claims to support trans folks and then votes against them in instances where no one will notice. She has shown that discrimination is not deterrent to receive her vote.
But Lisa Demuth!? I wonder if there’s a way to send a clear and powerful message without handing the keys to Demuth? It’s easier to think this through when it’s someone else’s state/district! (Speaking for myself.)
What about her? I can still vote for the least harmful candidate while acknowledging she is a political opportunist who views people’s rights as optional if it conveniences her vs someone who is outright hostile.
I am very suspicious of her and I’ve said she would not protect trans people like Walz who was really for the people, period. Because he had been a working man and a teacher . Normal .
Amy has been a climber most of all and that’s really what she is about . Herself and her image
PLEASE, EVERYONE, REMEMBER THIS: Pulling your support from a candidate has very little impact unless you communicate with their offices/campaigns to tell them WHY they are not getting your support. This is a critical thing you must do to be understood loud and clear. The only way we will not be taken for granted in the future is if they hear our angry voices over the telephone. And if you have volunteered or made campaign contributions in the past, make clear that you're not doing it for them this year. Let them know the costs.
Also, if you find yourself conflicted about a GOTV campaign for a state whose slate of Democratic candidates is peppered with these sell-out imposters, you should call the good folks to express your regrets that you can't participate in GOTV for the entire state, because you would be supporting some candidates (name them) who don't support you. That will increase pressure on the politicians who have gone rogue on us.
And restack this post. It won’t be the loss of trans votes and trans money that shifts the Overton window back over to including us. That’s the same for any other group that was or is persecuted and excluded. We have to speak up but the change will come when the majority agrees and includes it in their voting/donating criteria.
Please for the love of Flying Spaghetti Monster stop trying to peel off Republican voters. They're never going to vote for you. Most Americans don't care about trans people one way or the other. Especially when they can barely pay rent and food keeps getting more expensive. Focus on those issues and you'll win in a landslide. And if your corporate overlords don't like it, tell them to get fucked.
Absolutely. You can’t negotiate with people who want to murder you and your family. Bipartisanship is furthering fascism at this point. Wake tf up people
To label someone anti-trans because they do not support trans athletes is fair and accurate but to not include the things they have done to support the trans community while in office feels unfair. Aaron Ford in Nevada, for example, has brought forth and signed on to a LOT of lawsuits as Attorney General that support and protect the trans community. He didn’t give all the right answers when he met with trans youth and their families last year, including his stance on trans girls in sports, but I do believe he has done more good than harm and will continue to support the community. Note: I am NOT his biggest fan for a variety of reasons so don’t come at me. I’m simply asking for a bigger picture here because if this piece helps gets Joe Lombardo reelected… just please don’t do that to us.
Politicians sometimes change platforms when seeking different offices. Case in point: Jen Kiggans (R). As a Virginia senator, she gave a modicum of support for trans people, bucking her party and voting in favor of a couple of our bills. Then she ran for US representative and transformed overnight into a flaming transphobe.
Asking for people to consider the bigger picture seems like asking for nuance that is notably absent from “if this piece helps get Joe Lombardo elected… just please don’t do that to us.” Accurate reporting about a candidates actions shouldn’t be given that much political weight, IMO. If you think the conversation is missing nuance, write a piece that you think accurately captures your perspective! But to preemptively frame factual reporting as somehow doing the work of the oppressor feels… icky.
Erin, I always appreciate your reporting. Here, however, I do think the analysis requires more nuance. And I have a different perspective. To call Xavier Becerra anti-trans is just inaccurate. And consider, please, his Trumpist opponent, Steve Hilton. We cannot afford to have a Trumpist in the California statehouse. LGBTQI people cannot sit this contest out.
Came here to say this and see if anyone else shares a similar view. I think we have to weigh the pros and cons... his trans athletes statement in May was not ideal but he is pro-trans in all other aspects so I personally feel he is the better choice. I voted for Steyer in the primary but here we are.
Just like there are degrees of support a politician may give to the trans community, I think there are degrees of support we can give back (or not). Your vote is perhaps the least level of support. Campaign contributions are a higher level. Volunteering is a higher level still. Perhaps it's OK to say you'll hold your nose and cast your vote for the better or less evil of two candidates, not having any better choices. However, you can (and should) withhold higher levels of support AND TELL THEM WHY. That's what I did with Abigail Spanberger, who deflected and demurred whenever questioned about trans issues. Every time they hit me up for campaign contributions, I called her office and explained that it wasn't clear to me whether she supported me, so I wouldn't be contributing until she could clarify her positions in support of trans people.
FAIW, I think it's OK (minimally acceptable) for now to defer to the judgment of athletic organizations on the goddamn trans athletic stuff, as long as the government doesn't ban our participation, and I expressed that to her office. And later, I heard her express the same position. So perhaps I got through. She remained murky on other issues like gender-affirming care, though, so I remained murky in my support.
No question. All these things are vital. Voting. Funding. Volunteering. Protesting. And calling (and visting, when possible.) our representatives at all levels when they both do something right and do something wrong. Completely.
It’s a lot to ask of the working, caregivering, and student populations. And some individuals are in two, or even all three of those categories. It’s a lot to keep track and a large ask for many who are already weary, overstretched just trying to keep their heads above water, and their bodies housed and fed. Yet, I don’t know of another way to do the work of keeping our elected officials accountable and aware of their constituencies. We gotta spend a little time speaking out and showing them what we think 💭 and want and expect of our representatives.
You're right. On the one hand, I could lose all of my rights. On another hand, I could lose all my rights, but with ✨ nuance ✨. Thanks for the thoughtful perspective! 😸👍
• Immigrants both -legal and illegal immigrants- are losing their rights- and some of them have lost their lives.
• Poor people are losing affordable housing access and food assistance.
• MILLIONS OF US are losing our jobs, homes, healthcare, and food supply safety and security.
• Female identifying human beings are at risk of losing their right to vote, in any election.
• People who can get pregnant/give birth have lost their right to choose whether to keep or terminate a pregnancy.
• Black communities are losing safe drinking water and battling data centers that make their communities unlivable.
• Black and Brown people are being kidnapped and lynched.
• Young people are buried under student loan debt, and a bleak job market.
• Entry level workers are still (after many decades) trapped by a stagnant- ridiculously low and entirely inadequate, minimum wage.
The current federal regime doesn’t care about anyone’s health, life, or future. Not yours. Not mine.
Only their little top 2% club of technocrats, broligarchs, and billionaires, get to have power, privilege and control.
They’re a racist, xenophobic, homo/transphobic, misogynistic, patriarchal, white Christian nationalist, white supremacist DEATH CULT.
All of us are on their hit lists. Anyone who is not a straight, white, cis gender, Christian male is is irrelevant and expendable.
This government of violent criminals, grifters, religious zealots and political extremists cannot be swayed or reasoned with or pressured into caring about the other 98% of us.
TRANS RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS.
Human and civil rights have to be fought for all the time in all the ways. These are long standing issues that have been plaguing our democracy for decades and across centuries.
And the people who are in power under Trump right now don’t give a single shit about anyone’s rights but their own.
I keep hearing I need to WAKE THE F#CK UP to the core of rot, complacency, and incompetence the Democratic Party is riddled with. I need to realize DEMS are not any better than the GOP in the most important fundamental ways.
OK - I accept that reality.
I still have to make decisions in the world, as it’s given, as it actually is - not what I wish it was.
When we find the perfect candidate in the perfect political party that has more than a snowball’s chance in hell of being elected, let me know. Meanwhile we’re going to have to vote against the lesser of two known evils from these highly imperfect political parties.
AND
We are going to have to be very committed to making the worst politicians very aware that we are not going to be quiet. We are going to keep speaking out and showing up to make sure they know what we deserve and demand.
It is unfortunate that these Dems are not in full support of Trans rights. But they are all still much better choices than the Republicans they are running against.
Teaching this party that some constituents are less than others and that those people’s rights can be bargained or simply given away is not better. We know the GQP is evil, what is less understood is that corporate dems taking billionaire money are the same thing in sheep’s clothing.
They pretend to care, pretend to have a big tent, but when people running for office start actually advocating for policies that would help the middle and lower class then all of a sudden the knives come out.
The weaponization against the DSA candidates is appalling. Somehow dem orgs have money and voice to fight our own people, but not a peep about oligarchs and fascists? No opposition, no fight against the current admin or their anti human policies but plenty of ammo to keep actual change from happening. And yet, we’re supposed to vote blue no matter who? Ffs 🤦♀️, no!
They keep fundraising, telling us they’ll fight once they win…I find that to be completely disrespectful and disingenuous. What baseline does anyone have to believe that could be true? They haven’t fought any of this and have voted to give Ice more funding at every turn while clawing back rights against trans people and women.
Corporate / AIPAC Dems are arguably worse than republicans bc of this. Vote smart and realize who these candidates are connected to for money and influence.
If you'll settle for nothing now, you'll settle for nothing later.
If we don't take action now, we won't take action later.
If we are willing to vote for Dems who do not respect the universality of human rights, where is the line where we will stop supporting the ‘lesser evil’?
On the one hand, I'll lose all of my rights. On another hand, I'll lose all my rights. You're right, losing my rights is much better than losing my rights! Thanks for clearing that up! 😸👍
You could also highlight those candidates that are running openly as a transgender person. I'm running for state office here in red Alabama. www.elect-terri-osborne.com, yes as a democrat. being trans is not the focus of my campaign but I'm not hiding it either.
A note on Tom Suozzi: he’s always been a DINO sellout punk. His stance on our lives and livelihoods are consistent with his rancid ideology.
It’s just extremely disappointing to see former so-called “progressives” like Sherrod Brown and Xavier Becerra throw us under the bus and run us over and over.
Brown is very disappointing. I may hold my nose and sit out the gubernatorial vote but vote for Brown in hopes that Dems can take the Senate. The Ohio statehouse is already a GOP snakepit, but wresting full control of the legislature from Republicans would do incredible damage to the remainder of Trump’s term.
I'm disappointed in Brown's messaging, too. If it helps to understand him, I lobbied his office when he was a US representative in the late 1990's. As I was leaving the building, he chased me down on the street to thank me for talking with his staffer about employment discrimination and hate crimes against trans people. That's one of only two times in three decades that a politician ever chased me down on the street. That's why his recent messaging about "men" in women's sports was personally hurtful to me. However, I do still think he's one of the good guys. (I probably owe his office a phone call about that ad.)
I think we need to do more as a state to talk about how Amy Klobuchar is potentially an active danger to all the trans people currently inhabiting Minnesota.
Thank you EITM! In our current environment, it is easy to assume that ANYONE running against a Republican must be good for us. This list shows us that simply being a member of the party claiming to be on our side doesn't necessarily mean the INDIVIDUAL is an ally. Throwing us to the wolves, even if it's a political expedient, needs to be seen for what it is. There is no CONCRETE evidence (ACTUAL trans players in the WNBA, ACTUAL domination of girls sports by trans players, ACTUAL grooming of trans kids in school, ACTUAL evidence of trans violence other than as the victim, etc.) that would support these peoples' bigotry. Thus, we are in a holy war, in that dogma holds sway over any contradictory information.
Not voting is how we ended up in this mess! I think there can be more success putting pressure on elected Dems than any possibility with Republicans. Withholding campaign dollars etc
The country's lack of quality candidates is how we ended up with a lack of voting. We should pressure them before the election (and at reelections) when we have the most leverage. Stop settling for nothing.
I don't agree. I don't personally know a trans person who doesn't vote. The way we got here was by being loyal team players and being willing to "take one for the team" - over and over and over. We've made door mats of ourselves. Time to get up off of the floor and demand our due.
While I love what you do Erin, and I am an active supporter and subscriber; only New York, California and Washington really qualify as Blue States. All of the other Democratic candidates you have identified are in either solid Red or lean Red States. Plus New York and California are two of the three largest states. Distribution of large populations suggests that there may be Districts that have not yet been sufficiently gerrymandered to allow for totally safe Democratic candidates. It’s a little late in this election cycle to attempt to change minds or campaign strategy. I would suggest that on November 4th, the Transgender Community and its allies begin to set aside all of our heterogeneous political differences and organize ourselves, starting at the local, grassroots level and find some common ground that we can agree on and start talking with these renegade Democrats about exactly how they really feel about us and then decide whether to go scorched earth on them
As Joe Biden frequently said, "Don't compare me to the Almighty, compare me to the alternative." If the Democrats don't win back control of Congress this November, trans people will suffer horribly, and our country will very likely become an oligarchic illiberal democracy.
Always nice to know who not to stand in front of at the bus stop. Thanks for the list- fingers crossed it never grows longer.
Do we dig in our heels hard and refuse to support any Democrat who pays lip service to bigots, or do we go full court press on stopping Trump? I don't think we get to have both, in this timeline. If we don't take Congress away from the Republicans (I won't say take it 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬, because it's clear that the Democrats on this list won't be fighting for us, only against Trump; the enemy of my enemy is my enemy's enemy- nothing more, nothing less) then I honestly don't believe we'll have another free election in this country. We will see anti-trans legislation come hard and fast, and we will lose all legal status, period. It won't be a matter of 'merely' watching institutions over-comply in advance, anymore; the Mad King's edicts actually will carry the force of law, and we'll become outlaws by virtue of simply existing. These Dems might be backstabbing shitheads, but they'll toe the party line more often than they'll cross it, if their party is in control, and we won't see nearly as much erosion of our rights happen nearly as fast as it would if the GQP somehow managed to increase its majority.
On the other hand... if we let transphobia become a mainstream Democratic position, then we're fucked from all sides and we lose it all anyway, no matter who's in charge. That is a valid concern. The effects wouldn't be as immediate, but could end up being just as bad or even worse than the short-term abuses Republicans will visit on us that can be quickly undone under a saner, more reasonable, more empathetic government.
So, the decision of what to do with our votes this November comes down to whether we believe that a free and fair 2028 election is possible if Trump and his cronies have another two years to keep picking away at democracy itself with a meek and submissive Congress at their backs. I don't believe it will be, so I intend to be ruthlessly pragmatic when it comes to national politics- blue no matter who. I believe we've lost so much ground at the federal level that we can't afford to stand on principle in those races anymore. Removing Republicans from power to cut Trump's agenda off at the knees is the highest imperative, all other concerns secondary. In state races, though, I intend to vote against any Democrat who waffles on protecting 𝘢𝘭𝘭 of their constituents. So, if I were in Ohio, I would vote for Democratic congresscritters no matter what their platforms were, but I'd submit a write-in for governor and let the Acton campaign know exactly why (I'm not in Ohio, I'm just using it as an example because they've got 'phobes running for both Congress and the governorship).
My heart tells me that we need to draw a line in the sand, but my head tells me that we need to stop (or at least slow) the bleeding before we can mend the wound. I can't say with absolute certainty what the right play is for everyone, only which way I'm currently leaning. Listen to your conscience, whatever it tells you. Best of luck to all of us, in any event. We're gonna need it, no matter the outcome.
‘Many, myself included, have argued against voting for the worst offenders on this list even where it means a Republican takes the seat. A Republican victory costs the community one seat for one term. A worst-offender victory teaches the party’s consultant class, the Searchlights and Third Ways, that throwing transgender people under the bus is a winning strategy, and that lesson would be applied everywhere until the Democratic Party goes the way of Labour. One seat can be won back. A party cannot.’
Say it louder! oh my God, it is so refreshing to see actual political analysis in this country. Thank you for having a spine and a voice, Erin. We all owe you much.
My thoughts exactly!!
I’d also add Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota to that list given that she has repeatedly voted for various NDAA despite them being loaded with anti trans provisions. She claims to support trans folks and then votes against them in instances where no one will notice. She has shown that discrimination is not deterrent to receive her vote.
But now she can put Bipartisan on her campaign website! 🤡
Being bipartisan in this environment does fuck all to help anyone except the Epstein class.
right next to her award for most staplers thrown at staff members.
But Lisa Demuth!? I wonder if there’s a way to send a clear and powerful message without handing the keys to Demuth? It’s easier to think this through when it’s someone else’s state/district! (Speaking for myself.)
What about her? I can still vote for the least harmful candidate while acknowledging she is a political opportunist who views people’s rights as optional if it conveniences her vs someone who is outright hostile.
Yeah that’s what I’ve done since Obama. Look where it got us🙄.
I was acknowledging my own difficulty with deciding.
I am very suspicious of her and I’ve said she would not protect trans people like Walz who was really for the people, period. Because he had been a working man and a teacher . Normal .
Amy has been a climber most of all and that’s really what she is about . Herself and her image
Tim Kaine and Mark Warner too.
PLEASE, EVERYONE, REMEMBER THIS: Pulling your support from a candidate has very little impact unless you communicate with their offices/campaigns to tell them WHY they are not getting your support. This is a critical thing you must do to be understood loud and clear. The only way we will not be taken for granted in the future is if they hear our angry voices over the telephone. And if you have volunteered or made campaign contributions in the past, make clear that you're not doing it for them this year. Let them know the costs.
Also, if you find yourself conflicted about a GOTV campaign for a state whose slate of Democratic candidates is peppered with these sell-out imposters, you should call the good folks to express your regrets that you can't participate in GOTV for the entire state, because you would be supporting some candidates (name them) who don't support you. That will increase pressure on the politicians who have gone rogue on us.
And restack this post. It won’t be the loss of trans votes and trans money that shifts the Overton window back over to including us. That’s the same for any other group that was or is persecuted and excluded. We have to speak up but the change will come when the majority agrees and includes it in their voting/donating criteria.
And still vote, even if you have to write something in like "trans rights". It's not a protest vote unless you vote.
Well said Sarah! Thank you for sharing!
Dear Dems,
Please for the love of Flying Spaghetti Monster stop trying to peel off Republican voters. They're never going to vote for you. Most Americans don't care about trans people one way or the other. Especially when they can barely pay rent and food keeps getting more expensive. Focus on those issues and you'll win in a landslide. And if your corporate overlords don't like it, tell them to get fucked.
Absolutely. You can’t negotiate with people who want to murder you and your family. Bipartisanship is furthering fascism at this point. Wake tf up people
Glad we have this list. Thank you for putting it together for us!
To label someone anti-trans because they do not support trans athletes is fair and accurate but to not include the things they have done to support the trans community while in office feels unfair. Aaron Ford in Nevada, for example, has brought forth and signed on to a LOT of lawsuits as Attorney General that support and protect the trans community. He didn’t give all the right answers when he met with trans youth and their families last year, including his stance on trans girls in sports, but I do believe he has done more good than harm and will continue to support the community. Note: I am NOT his biggest fan for a variety of reasons so don’t come at me. I’m simply asking for a bigger picture here because if this piece helps gets Joe Lombardo reelected… just please don’t do that to us.
Maybe you should tell him he needs to publicly change his stance or he'll lose votes rather than giving him a pass?
Politicians sometimes change platforms when seeking different offices. Case in point: Jen Kiggans (R). As a Virginia senator, she gave a modicum of support for trans people, bucking her party and voting in favor of a couple of our bills. Then she ran for US representative and transformed overnight into a flaming transphobe.
Asking for people to consider the bigger picture seems like asking for nuance that is notably absent from “if this piece helps get Joe Lombardo elected… just please don’t do that to us.” Accurate reporting about a candidates actions shouldn’t be given that much political weight, IMO. If you think the conversation is missing nuance, write a piece that you think accurately captures your perspective! But to preemptively frame factual reporting as somehow doing the work of the oppressor feels… icky.
Erin, I always appreciate your reporting. Here, however, I do think the analysis requires more nuance. And I have a different perspective. To call Xavier Becerra anti-trans is just inaccurate. And consider, please, his Trumpist opponent, Steve Hilton. We cannot afford to have a Trumpist in the California statehouse. LGBTQI people cannot sit this contest out.
Came here to say this and see if anyone else shares a similar view. I think we have to weigh the pros and cons... his trans athletes statement in May was not ideal but he is pro-trans in all other aspects so I personally feel he is the better choice. I voted for Steyer in the primary but here we are.
Just like there are degrees of support a politician may give to the trans community, I think there are degrees of support we can give back (or not). Your vote is perhaps the least level of support. Campaign contributions are a higher level. Volunteering is a higher level still. Perhaps it's OK to say you'll hold your nose and cast your vote for the better or less evil of two candidates, not having any better choices. However, you can (and should) withhold higher levels of support AND TELL THEM WHY. That's what I did with Abigail Spanberger, who deflected and demurred whenever questioned about trans issues. Every time they hit me up for campaign contributions, I called her office and explained that it wasn't clear to me whether she supported me, so I wouldn't be contributing until she could clarify her positions in support of trans people.
FAIW, I think it's OK (minimally acceptable) for now to defer to the judgment of athletic organizations on the goddamn trans athletic stuff, as long as the government doesn't ban our participation, and I expressed that to her office. And later, I heard her express the same position. So perhaps I got through. She remained murky on other issues like gender-affirming care, though, so I remained murky in my support.
No question. All these things are vital. Voting. Funding. Volunteering. Protesting. And calling (and visting, when possible.) our representatives at all levels when they both do something right and do something wrong. Completely.
It’s a lot to ask of the working, caregivering, and student populations. And some individuals are in two, or even all three of those categories. It’s a lot to keep track and a large ask for many who are already weary, overstretched just trying to keep their heads above water, and their bodies housed and fed. Yet, I don’t know of another way to do the work of keeping our elected officials accountable and aware of their constituencies. We gotta spend a little time speaking out and showing them what we think 💭 and want and expect of our representatives.
You're right. On the one hand, I could lose all of my rights. On another hand, I could lose all my rights, but with ✨ nuance ✨. Thanks for the thoughtful perspective! 😸👍
• Immigrants both -legal and illegal immigrants- are losing their rights- and some of them have lost their lives.
• Poor people are losing affordable housing access and food assistance.
• MILLIONS OF US are losing our jobs, homes, healthcare, and food supply safety and security.
• Female identifying human beings are at risk of losing their right to vote, in any election.
• People who can get pregnant/give birth have lost their right to choose whether to keep or terminate a pregnancy.
• Black communities are losing safe drinking water and battling data centers that make their communities unlivable.
• Black and Brown people are being kidnapped and lynched.
• Young people are buried under student loan debt, and a bleak job market.
• Entry level workers are still (after many decades) trapped by a stagnant- ridiculously low and entirely inadequate, minimum wage.
The current federal regime doesn’t care about anyone’s health, life, or future. Not yours. Not mine.
Only their little top 2% club of technocrats, broligarchs, and billionaires, get to have power, privilege and control.
They’re a racist, xenophobic, homo/transphobic, misogynistic, patriarchal, white Christian nationalist, white supremacist DEATH CULT.
All of us are on their hit lists. Anyone who is not a straight, white, cis gender, Christian male is is irrelevant and expendable.
This government of violent criminals, grifters, religious zealots and political extremists cannot be swayed or reasoned with or pressured into caring about the other 98% of us.
TRANS RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS.
Human and civil rights have to be fought for all the time in all the ways. These are long standing issues that have been plaguing our democracy for decades and across centuries.
And the people who are in power under Trump right now don’t give a single shit about anyone’s rights but their own.
I keep hearing I need to WAKE THE F#CK UP to the core of rot, complacency, and incompetence the Democratic Party is riddled with. I need to realize DEMS are not any better than the GOP in the most important fundamental ways.
OK - I accept that reality.
I still have to make decisions in the world, as it’s given, as it actually is - not what I wish it was.
When we find the perfect candidate in the perfect political party that has more than a snowball’s chance in hell of being elected, let me know. Meanwhile we’re going to have to vote against the lesser of two known evils from these highly imperfect political parties.
AND
We are going to have to be very committed to making the worst politicians very aware that we are not going to be quiet. We are going to keep speaking out and showing up to make sure they know what we deserve and demand.
Nope. I don't "gonna have to vote for" anybody I don't want to. Period. Thanks for the ✨nuance✨ tho!
I respect your decision.
"but with ✨ nuance ✨"
ROFLMAO!!! Thanks for my morning laugh!
It is unfortunate that these Dems are not in full support of Trans rights. But they are all still much better choices than the Republicans they are running against.
Except for when they’re not.
Teaching this party that some constituents are less than others and that those people’s rights can be bargained or simply given away is not better. We know the GQP is evil, what is less understood is that corporate dems taking billionaire money are the same thing in sheep’s clothing.
They pretend to care, pretend to have a big tent, but when people running for office start actually advocating for policies that would help the middle and lower class then all of a sudden the knives come out.
The weaponization against the DSA candidates is appalling. Somehow dem orgs have money and voice to fight our own people, but not a peep about oligarchs and fascists? No opposition, no fight against the current admin or their anti human policies but plenty of ammo to keep actual change from happening. And yet, we’re supposed to vote blue no matter who? Ffs 🤦♀️, no!
They keep fundraising, telling us they’ll fight once they win…I find that to be completely disrespectful and disingenuous. What baseline does anyone have to believe that could be true? They haven’t fought any of this and have voted to give Ice more funding at every turn while clawing back rights against trans people and women.
Corporate / AIPAC Dems are arguably worse than republicans bc of this. Vote smart and realize who these candidates are connected to for money and influence.
If you'll settle for nothing now, you'll settle for nothing later.
If we don't take action now, we won't take action later.
If we are willing to vote for Dems who do not respect the universality of human rights, where is the line where we will stop supporting the ‘lesser evil’?
I love compromises that involve me being actively hurt and gaining little else, no slippery slope here nope.
Nope. See the UK for why you’re wrong
On the one hand, I'll lose all of my rights. On another hand, I'll lose all my rights. You're right, losing my rights is much better than losing my rights! Thanks for clearing that up! 😸👍
You could also highlight those candidates that are running openly as a transgender person. I'm running for state office here in red Alabama. www.elect-terri-osborne.com, yes as a democrat. being trans is not the focus of my campaign but I'm not hiding it either.
What a GREAT point and strategic approach!! GO TERRI ELLEN!
Thanks!
A note on Tom Suozzi: he’s always been a DINO sellout punk. His stance on our lives and livelihoods are consistent with his rancid ideology.
It’s just extremely disappointing to see former so-called “progressives” like Sherrod Brown and Xavier Becerra throw us under the bus and run us over and over.
Brown is very disappointing. I may hold my nose and sit out the gubernatorial vote but vote for Brown in hopes that Dems can take the Senate. The Ohio statehouse is already a GOP snakepit, but wresting full control of the legislature from Republicans would do incredible damage to the remainder of Trump’s term.
I'm disappointed in Brown's messaging, too. If it helps to understand him, I lobbied his office when he was a US representative in the late 1990's. As I was leaving the building, he chased me down on the street to thank me for talking with his staffer about employment discrimination and hate crimes against trans people. That's one of only two times in three decades that a politician ever chased me down on the street. That's why his recent messaging about "men" in women's sports was personally hurtful to me. However, I do still think he's one of the good guys. (I probably owe his office a phone call about that ad.)
Go get 'em Sarah! It sounds like you've got great positioning to shame him about this.
I think we need to do more as a state to talk about how Amy Klobuchar is potentially an active danger to all the trans people currently inhabiting Minnesota.
Thank you EITM! In our current environment, it is easy to assume that ANYONE running against a Republican must be good for us. This list shows us that simply being a member of the party claiming to be on our side doesn't necessarily mean the INDIVIDUAL is an ally. Throwing us to the wolves, even if it's a political expedient, needs to be seen for what it is. There is no CONCRETE evidence (ACTUAL trans players in the WNBA, ACTUAL domination of girls sports by trans players, ACTUAL grooming of trans kids in school, ACTUAL evidence of trans violence other than as the victim, etc.) that would support these peoples' bigotry. Thus, we are in a holy war, in that dogma holds sway over any contradictory information.
I agree with you Joanne. This is brilliantly stated. Thank you 🙏
Not voting is how we ended up in this mess! I think there can be more success putting pressure on elected Dems than any possibility with Republicans. Withholding campaign dollars etc
The country's lack of quality candidates is how we ended up with a lack of voting. We should pressure them before the election (and at reelections) when we have the most leverage. Stop settling for nothing.
I don't agree. I don't personally know a trans person who doesn't vote. The way we got here was by being loyal team players and being willing to "take one for the team" - over and over and over. We've made door mats of ourselves. Time to get up off of the floor and demand our due.
The suggestion is not to vote. That is the party I didn't agree with. I definitely agree with demanding more
Gotcha! I misread.
While I love what you do Erin, and I am an active supporter and subscriber; only New York, California and Washington really qualify as Blue States. All of the other Democratic candidates you have identified are in either solid Red or lean Red States. Plus New York and California are two of the three largest states. Distribution of large populations suggests that there may be Districts that have not yet been sufficiently gerrymandered to allow for totally safe Democratic candidates. It’s a little late in this election cycle to attempt to change minds or campaign strategy. I would suggest that on November 4th, the Transgender Community and its allies begin to set aside all of our heterogeneous political differences and organize ourselves, starting at the local, grassroots level and find some common ground that we can agree on and start talking with these renegade Democrats about exactly how they really feel about us and then decide whether to go scorched earth on them
As Joe Biden frequently said, "Don't compare me to the Almighty, compare me to the alternative." If the Democrats don't win back control of Congress this November, trans people will suffer horribly, and our country will very likely become an oligarchic illiberal democracy.
Not a democracy, but a completely fascist authoritarian country.
Always nice to know who not to stand in front of at the bus stop. Thanks for the list- fingers crossed it never grows longer.
Do we dig in our heels hard and refuse to support any Democrat who pays lip service to bigots, or do we go full court press on stopping Trump? I don't think we get to have both, in this timeline. If we don't take Congress away from the Republicans (I won't say take it 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬, because it's clear that the Democrats on this list won't be fighting for us, only against Trump; the enemy of my enemy is my enemy's enemy- nothing more, nothing less) then I honestly don't believe we'll have another free election in this country. We will see anti-trans legislation come hard and fast, and we will lose all legal status, period. It won't be a matter of 'merely' watching institutions over-comply in advance, anymore; the Mad King's edicts actually will carry the force of law, and we'll become outlaws by virtue of simply existing. These Dems might be backstabbing shitheads, but they'll toe the party line more often than they'll cross it, if their party is in control, and we won't see nearly as much erosion of our rights happen nearly as fast as it would if the GQP somehow managed to increase its majority.
On the other hand... if we let transphobia become a mainstream Democratic position, then we're fucked from all sides and we lose it all anyway, no matter who's in charge. That is a valid concern. The effects wouldn't be as immediate, but could end up being just as bad or even worse than the short-term abuses Republicans will visit on us that can be quickly undone under a saner, more reasonable, more empathetic government.
So, the decision of what to do with our votes this November comes down to whether we believe that a free and fair 2028 election is possible if Trump and his cronies have another two years to keep picking away at democracy itself with a meek and submissive Congress at their backs. I don't believe it will be, so I intend to be ruthlessly pragmatic when it comes to national politics- blue no matter who. I believe we've lost so much ground at the federal level that we can't afford to stand on principle in those races anymore. Removing Republicans from power to cut Trump's agenda off at the knees is the highest imperative, all other concerns secondary. In state races, though, I intend to vote against any Democrat who waffles on protecting 𝘢𝘭𝘭 of their constituents. So, if I were in Ohio, I would vote for Democratic congresscritters no matter what their platforms were, but I'd submit a write-in for governor and let the Acton campaign know exactly why (I'm not in Ohio, I'm just using it as an example because they've got 'phobes running for both Congress and the governorship).
My heart tells me that we need to draw a line in the sand, but my head tells me that we need to stop (or at least slow) the bleeding before we can mend the wound. I can't say with absolute certainty what the right play is for everyone, only which way I'm currently leaning. Listen to your conscience, whatever it tells you. Best of luck to all of us, in any event. We're gonna need it, no matter the outcome.