Victory in the News

Victory Fund announces ‘Ten Races to Watch’

A gay Republican seeking office in the Nevada State Legislature and a gay politician vying to become mayor of a Kentucky city are among the candidates the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund is highlighting as part of its recently announced “Ten Races to Watch.”

On Monday, the Victory Fund identified the names of ten endorsed candidates in races that the organization believes could have a significant impact on LGBT community.

The ten candidates represent a portion of the 164 candidates the organization has endorsed in all of 2010 and more than 100 candidates who are facing election in November, according to the Victory Fund.

In a statement, Chuck Wolfe, the Victory Fund’s president, predicted that 2010 will be “a banner year” for the organization and its mission to elect openly LGBT people to public office.

“We know out elected officials can be a leading political indicator of real change, so it’s exciting to see so many candidates stepping up to run for office this year,” Wolfe said.

The Victory Fund statement highlights each of the candidates running in the “Ten Races to Watch” in alphabetical order:

Chuck Wolfe: A Banner Year for Gay Politics

This year may not turn out to be the best one for congressional Democrats, but it’s likely to be a historic one for openly LGBT candidates across the country.

The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund has endorsed 163 out candidates for offices ranging from local school boards to Congress, making this our largest endorsement slate ever. But the numbers alone don’t describe how transformative some of these races may be, especially in places and offices that have never had openly LGBT office holders.

Of course last Tuesday brought one of the year’s biggest victories; Providence, R.I., Mayor David Cicilline won the Democratic primary to replace Rep. Patrick Kennedy in the House of Representatives. In deep blue Rhode Island, this win means David is well-positioned to become the fourth sitting openly gay Member of Congress, joining Reps. Tammy Baldwin, Barney Frank and Jared Polis.

Steve Pougnet is the Democratic nominee for Congress in the 45th Congressional District in California. The current mayor of Palm Springs could become the first openly gay parent in Congress if he defeats the incumbent, Rep. Mary Bono Mack.

Adding more out members of Congress will further expose their straight colleagues to the reality of who we are. When the House debates things like partnership rights or military service, they’ll be talking about the lives and experiences not only of some abstract community, but of colleagues who may be standing next to them on the House floor. There is tremendous power in that.

But congressional politics are only part of the story. Victory Fund candidates are seeing success in key states where legislatures are close to enacting laws that will represent concrete progress toward full equality for LGBT people, and their voices will be vital in those debates.

In Maryland, three gay and lesbian candidates are set to join four out incumbents in the state legislature, giving the state an unprecedented seven openly LGBT lawmakers. This is phenomenal news for same-sex couples who will be pushing for a marriage equality bill next year--a bill Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley has promised he’ll sign.

In Ohio, Nickie Antonio will take a seat in the State House after winning her hard-fought primary. She faces no general election opponent, so she will become the first openly LGBT member of the Ohio state legislature. It’s likely lawmakers will again try to pass legislation banning employment discrimination against LGBT people, and Nickie’s voice will figure prominently in that fight.

In Colorado, Lucia Guzman won her primary to keep the State Senate seat she was appointed to earlier this year. Her win this November will give Colorado four gay or lesbian state lawmakers next year, when advocates will try to finally pass a bill protecting the rights of same-sex couples.

And last Saturday in Hawaii, the state’s two out legislators won tough re-election primaries. They’ll likely try again next year to pass a sweeping civil unions bill, and this time Gov. Linda Lingle won’t be around to veto it.

Our progress demands our participation in the political process--not just as advocates or lobbyists, but as voting representatives of our local communities and the LGBT community. Pro-equality legislation is far more likely in places where out candidates run and win, so much so that it has become a leading political indicator of progress to come.

When they win, these candidates and dozens more like them around the country won’t represent victories just for a party or even a set of policy goals. They’ll become the face and voice of the LGBT community in the places where they serve. They’ll become our most important champions for real change, for true equality and for the idea that all Americans deserve the rights and responsibilities our Democracy promises.

As established organizations face new perspectives and groups, LGBT advocacy is evolving – despite setbacks and challenges

For groups like the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, which works to elect qualified LGBT candidates, this has impacted the organization's work.

''My job is to work with the candidates and the officials,'' Victory Fund President Chuck Wolfe says. ''Anything I can do that helps them win, that's what we do. And, in some cases, that's advising candidates on how to traverse some of these questions when organizations might disagree with each other on positions.''

With House in question, is Frank ’running scared’?

Frank is both a Democrat and a Democratic leader. He chairs the House Financial Services Committee. He’s also the most senior and most visible of the House’s three openly gay members.

While he’s gotten $9,000 from the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund and almost $9,500 from the Human Rights Campaign, that’s less than three percent of the $635,500 he’s received from various political action committees. In all, as of the Aug. 25 report to the Federal Elections Commission, his campaign has raised $2.4 million.

U.S. Could Get First Openly Gay Lieutenant Governor

Also, the Victory Fund has stated their support for the state senator: "Tisei has earned the respect of his colleagues and stands an excellent chance of becoming the party’s nominee for Lieutenant Governor if he can beat back the forces of intolerance on the extreme right wing of his party.  A group has emerged that’s urging Republican voters to reject Tisei because of his strong support for marriage equality, his support of teachers and because of his pro-choice stand."

Official to Face Hearing Over Blog Attacks

Mr. Armstrong, who did not respond to a request for an interview, was an intern this summer with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and in the past with the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund.

Denis Dison, communication

“We are advocating that nobody engage in the type of harassment that he was engaging in,” Mr. Dison said.

Mich. assistant attorney general's blog targeting gay student leader raises free speech issues

"This is just another tactic bringing awareness to what Chris really stands for," Shirvell said. "The substance of the matter is, Chris Armstrong is a radical homosexual activist who got elected partly funded by the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund to promote a very deeply radical agenda at the University of Michigan. ... I'm a Christian citizen exercising my First Amendment rights."

Denis Dison, spokesman for the Washington-based organization, denied that the fund donated money to Armstrong's campaign earlier this year. Dison said Armstrong, who was an intern with the fund two summers ago, told him about Shirvell's actions and he urged him to report Shirvell to police.

"It sounded like it was getting a little strange," Dison said. "I think everyone thinks it has crossed the line."

"If I'm a gay person living in Michigan, this does not instill confidence that the attorney general's office has my best interests at heart," he added. "It's surprising that you would keep an employee who would damage the credibility of the work that you're trying to do in the state."

Mich. AG's Blog Targets Gay Student President

Shirvell replied: "Chris Armstrong is a radical homosexual activist who got elected, partly funded by the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, to promote a very deeply radical agenda. ... His biggest issue is gender-neutral housing."

Denis Dison, spokesman for the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, which helps gay political candidates mount campaigns, tells the Upshot that Armstrong was an intern at their offices two years ago and went through candidate training at that time, but has received no funds from them. They do not endorse student government politicians.

Regional elections spotlight LGBT issues

2010 Victory Fund Gay & Lesbian Leadership Awards honors Speaker Pelosi

The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund held its gala awards ceremony honoring House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at the W Hotel on Wednesday. Protesters outside of the hotel called on Pelosi to renew funding for the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP). Inside the hotel, attendees paid up to $1,200 to support the Victory Fund as well as to have the opportunity to network and enjoy sushi and complimentary drinks. Speakers included actor Leslie Jordan, the Victory Fund’s president and CEO Chuck Wolfe, as well as members of congress Tammy Baldwin, Barney Frank and Nancy Pelosi.

Obama's DADT Dilemma

House speaker Nancy Pelosi acknowledged the administration’s predicament last night following an event where she received an award from the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund for her work on LGBT issues. During her speech, Pelosi reiterated her pledge to an adoring crowd that “’don’t ask, don’t tell’ would “be gone by the end of the year.”

Pelosi foresees ‘Don’t Ask’ end by year’s end

The speaker spoke to reporters after she gave a speech at the Gay & Lesbian Leadership Awards at the W Hotel, which was hosted by the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund.

During her speech, Pelosi made similar assurances and promised that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” will be “gone by the end of the year.”

“Some are here tonight who serve in the military,” she said. “God bless you for your courage and your patriotism. … But because of courage of some of them, this will be gone by the end of the year.”

Pelosi previously predicted in May that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” would be “a memory” by the end of this year during an interview with the Hill newspaper.

Speaking to reporters, Pelosi said Congress got the ball rolling on repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” to get lawmakers on record on the issue and so the change would be “in statute and all of that.”

The House in May passed an amendment that would repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” as part of the fiscal year 2011 defense authorization bill.

“But even the bill that we passed said that it was contingent upon the recommendation of the president’s … review,” she said. “The only difference would be statute versus the president [making a policy change.]”

Pressed on whether she thinks the executive branch would ultimately be responsible for ending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Pelosi replied, “That’s where it was anyway.”

“Others wanted to have more, so we tried to do more,” she said. “We’ll work very closely to try to see what happens after the election.”

Pelosi has previously said President Obama can issue an executive order to stop discharges under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” without action from Congress.

Supporters of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal have been calling on Obama since the beginning of his administration to issue an order to stop the discharges under the law, but the president hasn’t taken such action.

Asked whether she would call on Obama to issue an order to end “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Pelosi replied, “That is the unfolding that we will see.”

“I’m very pleased with the course that the president’s on, but I think that they we shouldn’t be discharging people until that happens — so that, we have a little separation of — in terms of policy on that,” Pelosi said.

Pelosi added House members who support “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal were “very disappointed” the Senate didn’t have sufficient votes to end a filibuster on moving forward with legislation that would end the law.

“In the Senate, the Republicans held up the bill entirely so it couldn’t even be considered, so it was very disappointing,” she said. “They went really out of their way to try to block this.”

Pelosi also reiterated her position that the Employment Non-Discrimination Act wouldn’t see a House vote until legislative action is complete on repealing the 1993 law barring open service in the U.S. military.

“I told everyone that right from the start — that if we want to go down the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ route, then we’d have to put ENDA in a different place,” she said.

Pelosi said initial plans for the 111th Congress were to take on hate crimes protections legislation followed by ENDA and then “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” But she said the House ended up acting on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” first before ENDA because there was “a lot of enthusiasm about changing the order.”

During her speech, Pelosi maintained the importance of the mid-term elections and said “the fabric of our middle class and strength of our democracy” is at stake.

Pelosi added that the election results will also “accelerate the pace of passing ENDA or set us back.”

The speaker said she believes the votes are in the U.S. House to pass ENDA, but expressed concern about a motion to recommit that could derail the bill.

The motion to recommit is a legislative manuever that opponents of ENDA could use to scuttle the bill when it comes to the House floor.

“I think we have the votes for it, but we have to resist the motion to recommit,” Pelosi said. “We can’t pass the bill unless we can resist all of the bad things that they could do to the bill along the way.”

Also speaking at the event were gay Reps. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.).

During his speech, Frank emphasized the importance of keeping a Democratic majority in the next Congress and questioned those who would criticize lawmakers who support LGBT rights for the lack of progress on pro-LGBT bills.

“I understand people being unhappy about that,” he said. “What I do not understand is people who think that the way to respond to the fact that we weren’t able to get things done is further to empower the people who kept us from getting them done.”

Frank urged attendees to “bitch and fight” all the way to the polls to re-elect a Democratic majority in the U.S. House because Pelosi has been such a strong supporter of LGBT rights.

“Neither Tammy, nor I, nor anybody else has ever had to ask for her to support us,” Frank said. “We take that for granted and she has been the been the single most important public official in the history of the United States to be fully committed to our agenda not just as a matter of support, but as matter of her own personal involvement.”

Pelosi: DADT "will be gone by the end of the year"

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was optimistic about the end of the military's ban on gay and lesbian service, saying on Wednesday night, "'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' will be gone by the end of the year. It will just be a sad memory." This, she said, despite last week's vote in the Senate against bringing the bill containing repeal language to the floor for debate.

Talking about "the pain [DADT] has caused people," Pelosi told the crowd at the Victory Fund's 10th annual Gay & Lesbian Leadership Awards that "some are here tonight who served in our military. ... Because of the courage of some of them, this will be gone by the end of the year."

Pelosi was introduced by Reps. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), who had been, in turn, introduced by Victory Fund president Chuck Wolfe.

Her comments, however, about the Employment Non-Discrimination Act -- a bill sponsored by Frank -- were far more equivocal.

Pelosi -- whose decision not to bring ENDA the House floor for a vote has led to multiple occasions in which people were arrested for protesting that inaction -- on Wednesday said that the upcoming mid-term elections were essential to moving forward the bill outlawing anti-LGBT job discrimination.

"[A] lot is riding on this election," she told the crowd gathered at the W Hotel's main ballroom on Wednesday evening. "And part of the choice that will be made will either accelerate the pace of passing ENDA or set us back, and we have to realize that. We have to realize that."

For the co-director of Get Equal, the organization involved in those protests of Pelosi, tonight's speech was about leadership -- but more about, in Robin McGehee's view, Pelosi's lack of leadership on the bill.

Talking to Metro Weekly, McGehee said, "Leadership is about doing the right thing, not the politically safe thing. What I heard her saying is that even with controlling both chambers of Congress and having a Democratic president -- even with all of that -- her leadership has not been able to get ENDA passed out of committee and onto the floor.

"I don't want to have a Republican-dominated Congress. But I also don't believe we're the only progressive community dissatisfied with the lack of leadership," McGehee said. "I feel like she's punting on our position and our rights and yet asking us to give, and I'll give when we get equal. I'll vote for her, but I'm not going to give money or time."

WATCH: Victory Fund Asks What's at Stake for LGBT Voters on Nov. 2

Thinking of sitting out the mid-term elections on Nov. 2? Don't.

The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund releases a hard-hitting new web video entitled "What Will You Lose?" to explain what is at stake for the LGBT community. And there are dozens of reasons to vote in November, from health care reform to the Supreme Court. Most important: Preventing anti-gay conservatives from controlling Congress.

Shout out to hottie Democratic National Committee member Evan Low at 1:00, the mayor of Campbell, California and the youngest openly gay mayor in the country. And thanks to the Victory Fund for its help in electing Maryland's Mary Washington, the second openly lesbian Black legislator in the nation.

Victory Fund Video: What Will You Lose?

With five weeks remaining before the midterm elections, the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund has launched a video campaign asking people to express what they will lose should antigay extremists succeed in consolidating their power.

The stark video cites antigay rhetoric from incumbents up for reelection like U.S. senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina and Oklahoma state representative Sally Kern. Some of the rights deemed to be at stake have not even been won yet, which points to the video's role as a motivation tool for disaffected Democratic voters.

“If they win, they'll kick brave troops out of the military, stop partner visitation rights in hospitals, and prevent gays and lesbians from adopting kids who need loving homes,” says the Victory Fund.

The campaign invites viewers to submit their own 15-second video about what they will lose in the event of antigay extremist wins.

Gay And Lesbian Victory Fund Takes On Social Conservatives

The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund released a jarring new video called "What Will You Lose?" in which they highlight what LGBT Americans would lose should social conservatives like Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) get their way. So, what's on the list: love, freedom, and dignity, among other things.

Jordan to Emcee Awards

Comedian and actor Leslie Jordan will be the emcee at the 10th annual Gay and Lesbian Leadership Awards at the W on Wednesday evening.

The event will honor Speaker Nancy Pelosi and will feature remarks from Reps. Barney Frank and Tammy Baldwin.

A conversation with Houston Mayor Annise Parker

With 2.2 million constituents, Parker said she couldn’t be just the gay mayor, but she would continue to use her position to advance LGBT rights when possible. She helps raise money and speaks for the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund around the country and said their training was extremely helpful.

Gay Houston Mayor Gets High Marks

A new poll indicates that a solid majority of Houston residents say that Mayor Annise Parker is doing a “good” or “excellent” job.

The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund reported on the poll from 11 News/KUHF-Houston Public Radio.

“Fourteen percent of poll respondents rated Parker’s job performance as ‘excellent,’” reported the Victory Fund’s blog, GayPolitics.com. “Forty-two percent said she was doing a ‘good’ job. Twenty-seven percent described her performance as ‘fair,’ and just six percent said she was doing a ‘poor’ job.”

Parker was elected last December and made Houston the largest U.S. city to date to elect an openly gay mayor.

SLIDESHOW: Victory Fund Brunch NYC

Today I attended the first annual Victory Fund brunch in NYC, where headliner Rep. Barney Frank talked at length about the difficulties we face in the repeal of DADT and even getting ENDA to a vote. Comedian Alec Mapa hosted, NYC Council Speaker Christine Quinn spoke, anti-Quinn activists protested outside, and a literal who's who of political homorati mingled over mimosas.