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<\/p>\nVirginia Transgender Democrat Makes History, Ousting Bigot Delegate Who Wrote Transphobic \u2018Bathroom Bill\u2019<\/b>
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Del. Robert G. Marshall (R-Prince William), who wrote Virginia\u2019s\u00a0 hideous anti-transgender \u201cbathroom bill\u201d, has lost his seat to Danica Roem, now the first openly transgender elected official in the state and the first elected to a state legislature in the U.S.<\/p>\n
The Washington Post<\/em> reports<\/a>:<\/p>\n The race between Roem, 33, and Marshall, 73, focused on traffic and other local issues in Prince William County but also exposed the nation\u2019s fault lines over gender identity. It pitted a local journalist who began\u00a0her physical gender transition\u00a0<\/b>four years ago against an outspoken social conservative who has referred to himself as Virginia\u2019s\u00a0\u201cchief homophobe\u201d<\/a>earlier this year introduced a \u201cbathroom bill<\/a>\u201d that\u00a0died in committee.<\/p>\n \u201cFor 26 years I\u2019ve been proud to fight for you, and fight for our future,\u201d Marshall said in a message posted on Facebook Tuesday night. \u201cThough we all wish tonight would have turned out differently, I am deeply grateful for your support and effort over the years.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m committed to continue the fight for you, but in a different role going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n As Towleroad\u2019s Michael Fitzgerald reported earlier this year<\/a>:<\/p>\n In 2010, discussing his attempt to ban LGBT people from Virginia\u2019s National Guard, Marshall said:<\/p>\n \u201cIf I needed a blood transfusion and the guy<\/a> next to me had committed sodomy 14 times in the last month, I\u2019d be worried.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a distraction when I\u2019m on the battlefield and have to concentrate on the enemy 600 yards away and I\u2019m worried about this guy<\/a> who\u2019s got eyes on me.\u201d<\/p>\n In 2012 he said that \u201chomosexuality is not a civil right\u201d and has claimed that opponents of religious freedom laws are\u00a0discriminating against heterosexuals<\/b><\/a>.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, he introduced what has been described as one of the most dangerous bathroom bills in the country.\u00a0Mother Jones<\/b><\/a>\u00a0reports that the proposed legislation went a step further than other states by requiring schools to out students to their parents within 24 hours if they asked \u201cto be recognized or treated as the opposite sex<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n In May, Roem \u2013 who\u00a0beat out<\/b><\/a>\u00a0Steve Jansen, Andrew Adams and Mansimran Kahlon to win her party\u2019s backing \u2013 said:<\/p>\n \u201cLet me make this really clear for you: When the people of the 13th District elect a transgender woman<\/a> to replace the most anti-LGBT legislator in the South, it will be an act of certainty, and it will be a defining moment that will resonate across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n However, she told the Washington Post that she is more concerned with the important issues. Marshall, she said, \u201cis more concerned with where I go to the bathroom than where his constituents go to work\u2026I\u2019m running a race on improving transportation rather than ensuring discrimination.\u201d<\/p>\n Welcoming Roem\u2019s selection, Aisha C. Moodie-Mills, CEO of Victory Fund,\u00a0said<\/b><\/a>:.<\/p>\n \u201cDanica Roem is a leader in a national movement of trans<\/a> candidates who are determined to become a voice for their community in the halls of power. This historic primary win sets up a general election battle where voters will choose between \u2018Bigot Bob\u2019 Marshall \u2013 the most anti-LGBTQ member of the Virginia state legislature \u2013 or Danica, a proud trans<\/a> woman<\/a> who is committed to representing all people in her district. I am confident voters will choose leadership over divisiveness and make Danica the first out trans<\/a> candidate to win and serve in a state legislature.\u201d<\/p>\n Stephen Farnsworth, an expert on Virginia politics and a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington, said that although Roem is in with a shot, it will be incredibly hard to predict how exactly this contest will play out.<\/p>\n He noted that while\u00a0Marshall \u201chas managed to win despite having a target on his back election cycle after election cycle,\u201d Roem\u2019s best chance is to emphasize constituent service issues rather that national social agenda issues.<\/p>\n The post Virginia Transgender Democrat Makes History, Ousting Bigot Delegate Who Wrote Transphobic \u2018Bathroom Bill\u2019<\/a> appeared first on Towleroad<\/a>.<\/p>\nRELATED:\u00a0Wingnut Bob Marshall Introduces \u2018Unethical, Abusive And Dangerous\u2019 Anti-Gay Legislation in Virginia<\/a><\/em><\/h2>\n