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Gay N.H. Executive Council candidate stumps in D.C.

Chris Pappas said sexual orientation “not an issue”

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Gay News, Washington Blade, Gay New Hampshire

Chris Pappas (Photo courtesy of Chris Pappas)

The Victory Fund on Friday hosted a fundraiser for gay New Hampshire Executive Council candidate Chris Pappas at the Beacon Bar and Grill’s Sky Lounge in D.C.

Gay New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley was among the roughly 50 people who attended; while U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.,) former Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese and Maryland Del. Heather Mizeur (D-Montgomery County) are among those who co-hosted the gathering.

“It was a nice group and a successful event,” said Pappas.

Pappas, who co-owns a popular Manchester restaurant that his family opened nearly a century ago, was a state representative before he served two terms as Hillsborough County treasurer. He declared his candidacy for the five-member gubernatorial advisory and oversight body in March after former Manchester Mayor Ray Wieczorek announced he would not seek another term. Pappas, 31, will face either current Hillsborough County Treasurer Robert Burns, state Sen. Tom DeBlois or local business owner Chuck Rolecek in November.

He told the Blade that he decided to run in response to the Republican Party’s near sweep of statewide offices in 2010. Pappas specifically pointed to the GOP-controlled Executive Council’s decisions to defund the state’s Planned Parenthood clinics and block a federal grant that would have funded a study into the proposed expansion of a commuter rail line from Boston into southern New Hampshire as two issues that specifically influenced his decision.

“The Executive Council has real power over the decision making process and the purse strings of our state,” he noted. “I think they’ve been using that to real extreme political ends.”

Pappas applauded lawmakers on both sides of the aisle who overwhelmingly voted against a bill in March that would have repealed the law that has allowed gays and lesbians to marry in New Hampshire since 2010.

“It was years in the making of folks who had worked on the ground here building a coalition of not just Democrats and progressives, but Republicans and Libertarians as well,” he said. “That proved a successful strategy in the Legislature this year.”

Governor John Lynch, who announced last September that he would not seek a fifth term, signed the state’s same-sex marriage law in 2009. The two leading Republican gubernatorial candidates — Kevin Smith and Ovide Lamontagne — have said they would sign a same-sex marriage repeal bill if elected.

“We want to elect people who are advocates and [who are] going [to] work for us on this issue,” said Pappas. “It could come to a head again this year if we don’t elect the right governor.”

Pappas has hired a full-time campaign manager and opened an office in Manchester since officially declaring his candidacy. He said his sexual orientation is “not an issue” among potential voters, but conceded that he will need to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to remain a competitive candidate going into November.

“We have a tactical advantage, but that can be easily outweighed with the amount of money that’s going to be put into television ads and the amount of money that’s going to come from these national right wing super PACS,” said Pappas, referring to New Hampshire’s status as a swing state in this year’s presidential election. He added he remains confident that voters will “see through efforts” from the Koch brothers and Karl Rove to “influence our elections with secret corporate money.”

“All the television ads in the world won’t outweigh the impact of neighbors talking to neighbors about the issues and values that matters to working families,” added his campaign in a follow-up e-mail to the Blade. “That’s what our grassroots team is already doing.”

In spite of these concerns, those who attended Pappas’ D.C. fundraiser were quick to praise him.

“Chris is a rising political star who’s already deeply experienced and knowledgeable about state government,” said Victory Fund CEO Chuck Wolfe. “If he wins this race he’ll be one of the state’s highest-ranking openly LGBT officials, but more importantly he’ll be in a position to serve all the people of New Hampshire. We’re proud to endorse him.”

Buckley, a former New Hampshire state representative from Manchester, agreed.

“Chris has the ability to bring people together and solve problems,” he added. “He has a bright future.”

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District of Columbia

Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals

Three LGBTQ icons to lead parade

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Deacon Maccubbin attends the 2024 Capital Pride Parade. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

WorldPride organizers announced Thursday that actress and trans activist Laverne Cox, powerhouse performer Reneé Rapp, and LGBTQ trailblazer Deacon Maccubbin will serve as grand marshals for this year’s WorldPride parade.

The Capital Pride Alliance, which is organizing WorldPride 2025 in Washington, D.C., revealed the honorees in a press release, noting that each has made a unique contribution to the fabric of the LGBTQ community.

Laverne Cox (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Cox made history in 2014 as the first openly transgender person nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category for her role in Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.” She went on to win a Daytime Emmy in 2015 for her documentary “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word,” which followed seven young trans people as they navigated coming out.

Rapp, a singer and actress who identifies as a lesbian, rose to prominence as Regina George in the Broadway musical “Mean Girls.” She reprised the role in the 2024 film adaptation and also stars in Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls,” portraying a character coming to terms with her sexuality. Rapp has released an EP, “Everything to Everyone,” and an album, “Snow Angel.” She announced her sophomore album, “Bite Me,” on May 21 and is slated to perform at the WorldPride Music Festival at the RFK Festival Grounds.

Deacon Maccubbin, widely regarded as a cornerstone of Washington’s LGBTQ+ history, helped organize D.C.’s first Gay Pride Party in 1975. The event took place outside Lambda Rising, one of the first LGBTQ bookstores in the nation, which Maccubbin founded. For his decades of advocacy and activism, he is often referred to as “the patriarch of D.C. Pride.”

“I am so honored to serve as one of the grand marshals for WorldPride this year. This has been one of the most difficult times in recent history for queer and trans people globally,” Cox said. “But in the face of all the rhetorical, legislative and physical attacks, we continue to have the courage to embrace who we truly are, to celebrate our beauty, resilience and bravery as a community. We refuse to allow fear to keep us from ourselves and each other. We remain out loud and proud.”

“Pride is everything. It is protection, it is visibility, it is intersectional. But most importantly, it is a celebration of existence and protest,” Rapp said.

The three will march down 14th Street for the WorldPride Parade in Washington on June 7.

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Congress

House passes reconciliation with gender-affirming care funding ban

‘Big Beautiful Bill’ now heads to the Senate

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U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) (Washington Blade photo by Michael. Key)

The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday voted 215-214 for passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” reconciliation package, which includes provisions that would prohibit the use of federal funds to support gender-affirming care.

But for an 11th hour revision of the bill late Wednesday night by conservative lawmakers, Medicaid and CHIP would have been restricted only from covering treatments and interventions administered to patients younger than 18.

The legislation would also drop requirements that some health insurers must cover gender-affirming care as an “essential health benefit” and force states that currently mandate such coverage to find it independently. Plans could still offer coverage for transgender care but without the EHB classification patients will likely pay higher out of pocket costs.

To offset the cost of extending tax cuts from 2017 that disproportionately benefited the wealthiest Americans, the reconciliation bill contains significant cuts to spending for federal programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

The Human Rights Campaign criticized House Republicans in a press release and statement by the group’s president, Kelley Robinson:

“People in this country want policies and solutions that make life better and expand access to the American Dream. Instead, anti-equality lawmakers voted to give  handouts to billionaires built on the backs of hardworking people — with devastating consequences for the LGBTQ+ community.

“If the cuts to programs like Medicaid and SNAP or resources like Planned Parenthood clinics weren’t devastating enough, House Republicans added a last minute provision that expands its attacks on access to best practice health care to transgender adults.

“This cruel addition shows their priorities have never been about lowering costs or expanding health care access–but in targeting people simply for who they are. These lawmakers have abandoned their constituents, and as they head back to their districts, know this: they will hear from us.”

Senate Republicans are expected to pass the bill with the budget reconciliation process, which would allow them to bypass the filibuster and clear the spending package with a simple majority vote.

Changes are expected as the bill will be reviewed and amended by committees, particularly the Finance Committee, and then brought to the floor for debate — though modifications are expected to focus on Medicaid reductions and debate over state and local tax deductions.

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Photos

PHOTOS: D.C. Trans Pride

Schuyler Bailar gives keynote address

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D.C. Trans Pride 2025 was held at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on May 17. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

2025 D.C. Trans Pride was held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, May 17. The day was filled with panel discussions, art, social events, speakers, a resource fair and the Engendered Spirit Awards. Awardees included Lyra McMillan, Pip Baitinger, Steph Niaupari and Hayden Gise. The keynote address was delivered by athlete and advocate Schuyler Bailar.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

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