Politics
LGBTQ candidates win big in D.C. election for local offices
Harris takes 90 percent of vote among city electorate
As expected, D.C.’s pro-LGBTQ Democratic incumbent and non-incumbent candidates for seats on the D.C. City Council, the D.C. Congressional Delegate seat, and the so-called “shadow” U.S. Senate and U.S. House seats won re-election on Tuesday by a wide margin in a city with an overwhelmingly Democratic electorate.
In the race for U.S. president, Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris had 90.4 percent of the D.C. vote as of the 10:53 p.m. vote count, with Republican Donald Trump receiving 6.6 percent and independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. receiving 0.83 percent of the D.C. vote. Kennedy’s decision to withdraw his candidacy and endorse Trump came too late to have his name removed from the D.C. ballot.
Also as expected, Allister Chang, the gay member of the D.C. State Board of Education, which is a nonpartisan body, received 93.49 percent of the vote in his unopposed race for re-election to the Board’s Ward 2 seat. The election results, however, show that one or more write-in candidates received 6.5 percent of the vote.
Chang is one of two D.C. elected officials other than Advisory Neighborhood Commission members, who is a member of the LGBTQ community. D.C. Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5), who was not up for re-election this year, is the other one.
The controversial D.C. election ballot measure called Initiative 83, which calls for the city to adopt a ranked choice voting system and open primaries in which independents can vote in a party primary, was approved overwhelmingly with 72.6 percent of the vote. The election results as of late Tuesday evening showed 27.3 percent of voters voted “no” on the initiative.
LGBTQ activists were divided over whether to support or oppose Initiative 83, with the Capital Stonewall Democrats, the city’s largest local LGBTQ political group, declining to take a position on the initiative. But one of the group’s longtime members, Ward 8 gay Democratic activist Phil Pannell, served as treasurer of the committee that led the campaign for Initiative 83.
Also winning re-election by a wide margin was D.C. Congressional Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D), who received 80.2 percent of the vote. Challengers Kymore Freeman (Statehood-Green Party) received 6.4 percent, Myrtle Patricia Alexander (R) received 6.3 percent, and Michael A. Brown (I) received 6.2 percent.
Norton, a longtime LGBTQ rights supporter in Congress, is expected to play an important role in defending LGBTQ rights in what appears to be a Republican-controlled Congress, and a Donald Trump presidency.
Among the D.C. Council races, incumbents Robert White (D-At-Large) and Christina Henderson (I-At-Large), won re-election with 62.4 percent and 23 percent respectively. The two were challenged by Statehood Green Party candidate Daryl Moch, who received 7.5 percent of the vote, and Republican Rob Simmons, who received 6.36 percent.
Under the city’s electoral system, two of the city’s four at-large Council members or candidates run on the same ballot in separate election years, with voters allowed to vote for two candidates in that race. The highest two vote-getters are declared the winners.
In other Council races, Ward 2 Council member Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) who ran unopposed on the ballot, received 93.4 percent of the vote, with 6.5 percent going to one or more write-in candidates. One write-in candidate, who identified himself as Rondell Magic Jordan, put up campaign posters near Dupont Circle area gay bars in his race against incumbent Pinto, who is a longtime LGBTQ rights supporter.
Ward 4 Council member Janeese Lewis George (D), who also ran unopposed, received 96.6 percent of the vote, with 3.3 percent going to one or more write-in candidates. In the Council race for Ward 7, in which longtime LGBTQ supportive incumbent Vincent Gray did not run for re-election, Democrat Wendel Felder, received 92.7 percent of the vote, with Republican Noah Montgomery receiving 5.9 percent.
Ward 8 Council member Trayon White (D), who was indicted earlier this year on a federal bribery charge, won re-election with 76 percent of the vote. Republican challenger Nate Derenge received 14.6 percent of the vote, and one or more write-in candidates received 9.2 percent of the vote.
Democrat Ankit Jain won his race for the D.C. shadow U.S. Senate seat with 89.9 percent of the vote, with Republican Nelson Rimensnyder receiving 9.2 percent. Incumbent shadow U.S. Representative Oye Owolewa won re-election with 90.7 percent of the vote. Republican challenger Ciprian Ivanof received 8.5 percent.
Along with gay D.C. State Board of Education member Allister Chang’s election victory, At-Large State Board of Education member Jacque Patterson won re-election unopposed with 97.3 percent of the vote. Ward 7 school board member Eboni-Rose Thompson won re-election with 71 percent of the vote, with challengers Toni Crinner receiving 20.1 percent and Charles Boston receiving 7.6 percent.
Ward 8 State Board of Education candidate LaJoy Johnson ran unopposed and received 98.2 percent of the vote. The outcome of the Ward 4 State Board of Education race surprised some observers when incumbent Frazier O’Leary lost to challenger T. Michelle Colson by a margin of 54.2 percent to 44.6 percent.
If the final vote counts confirm that Republicans have won control of both houses of Congress and with Trump confirmed as the next U.S. president, D.C. officials could find themselves defending the city’s home rule government consisting of an elected mayor and City Council.
During his election campaign, Trump has hinted that he might take steps to rescind D.C.’s home rule government and restore the pre-home rule form of D.C. government in place prior to the 1970s, in which a commission nominated by the U.S. president and confirmed by Congress runs the day-to-day operations of the city. Congress would have to approve such an action.
2026 Midterm Elections
Markey’s primary win deemed success for LGBTQ activists
Mass. lawmaker champions transgender rights
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) clinched the Democratic seat for his reelection campaign in Massachusetts’s primary election on Tuesday.
Markey won the deep-blue state with 64.8 percent of the vote, according to NBC News, triumphing over Marine Corps combat veteran and Congressman Seth Moulton, who received 35.2 percent of the vote.
Massachusetts’s primary election, which determined which Democratic candidate will head to the polls to face off against the Republican challenger in November, is being considered a victory for LGBTQ-inclusive policy, as well as for a divisive pro-transgender rights candidate — both things Markey has become an outspoken champion of.
Markey has experience at multiple levels of government, from the state level, where he served three terms in the state House of Representatives, to his federal tenure, including 20 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives and is now serving his second term as a senator. He has become a fixture of a changing Democratic Party in one of the most consistently blue places in the U.S.
This primary — and much of the national discussion surrounding the Senate seat — focused a lot of campaigning power on fighting the growing sentiment, led mostly by Republicans, that the frustration many Americans feel lends itself to an anti-establishment and anti-incumbent attitude.
Markey ran his campaign using his past as a reflection of his commitment to constantly putting his best foot forward for Bay Staters — particularly with apprehension for issues younger and more progressive democrats have been righting for — including Green New Deal and “Medicare for All” while Moulton — who was also elected to federal office prior to this run — campaigned on being younger than Markey, arguing that he was not the same type of established politician.
Moulton also faced backlash for negative comments about trans athletes, sparking criticism for those who did want younger candidate but want for trans rights to be protected.
Markey’s track record of supporting the LGBTQ community is one of the most clear in federal politics, one that has garnered a “100 percent lifetime voting record” on the Human Rights Campaign’s PAC politician review scorecard.
That list of Markey’s actions includes being a cosponsor of the Equality Act, driving landmark legislation to ensure federal protections for LGBTQ Americans, and being one of the most vocal proponents for trans rights in the federal government — specifically in multiple appropriations bills and in the National Defense Authorization Act. He was also the lead sponsor of the Transgender Health Care Access Act and the Transgender Bill of Rights resolution.
Markey first introduced the Transgender Bill of Rights in the Senate in 2023, where it ultimately failed to be brought to law. He reintroduced the legislation this year once again. This was a direct response to the attitude pushed by many conservatives after 2021, when the push to minimize trans rights started to become a key part of their cause and has been constantly propped up by the Trump-Vance administration.
“Massachusetts needs a senator who stands up and fights back, a senator who never forgets who they are fighting for,” Markey said during his victory speech. “That has been the mission of my life, and it always will be.”
Following the calling of the primary, a slew of LGBTQ organizations rallied behind Markey, many pushing his past as an asset that puts his money where his mouth is through advocating for legislation specifically protecting the LGBTQ community.
Tyler Hack, the executive director of the Christopher Street Project, an organization dedicated to pushing for legal protections for trans americans, released a statement following Markey’s win. Hack argued that putting forward such a staunchly pro-trans candidate is a win for the community, especially after endorsing him earlier this year.
“Tonight, anti-trans politics lost. Massachusetts rejected the idea that attacking transgender people is a shortcut to political power. Voters chose a different path: one where equality is not negotiable, cruelty is not courage, and transgender people do not have to disappear for Democrats to succeed.”
The Human Rights Campaign also endorsed him as a candidate earlier this year and issued a statement via its president, Kelley Robinson.
“Ed Markey has spent decades fighting for LGBTQ+ equality, for working people, and for a more livable world,” Robinson said. “He knows why equality matters. He’s stood with us no matter what. We were proud to endorse him this year, and when a pro-equality majority takes back the Senate this fall, we will continue to count on him as a champion for our community.”
Markey is running for reelection against Republican John Deaton in November, where he is expected to win.
Congress
HRC president campaigns for Chris Pappas in NH
Gay congressman running to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson on Sunday campaigned for U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) in New Hampshire.
Robinson traveled to Manchester, the state’s largest city, nine days before the Sept. 8 primary that will determine who will vie for retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)’s seat.
We’re hitting the pavement across New Hampshire to fight for a freer, fairer future for everyone.
Glad to have Human Rights Campaign President @KelleyJRobinson join us for a canvass launch in Manchester today. pic.twitter.com/XWCEaQxy4o
— Chris Pappas (@ChrisPappasNH) August 30, 2026
Former U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu, who represented New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate from 2003-2009, will face off against former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, who represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate from 2010-2013, in the Republican primary.
Karishma Manzur is among the Democrats challenging Pappas.
A poll the University of New Hampshire Survey Center released on Aug. 26 shows Sununu is ahead of Brown. The same survey shows Pappas ahead of Manzur and his other Democratic challengers.
The UNH Survey Center poll shows Sununu ahead of Pappas by a 45-43 percent margin if they were to face off in the general election. The margin of error is +/-2.1 percent.
Pappas would become the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate if he were to win in November.
Congress
Chris Van Hollen says the Democratic Party needs change. Is he the one to lead it?
Senator is backing anti-establishment Democrats across the country
By LEE O. SANDERLIN | The Democratic Party is having something of an identity crisis — losing to President Donald Trump twice in three elections will do that.
Should the party embrace anti-establishment figures who espouse progressive policy ideas like Medicare for all and rhetoric about unrigging the economy for the 1 percent? Or should Democrats try to appeal to moderates who want to return to semi-normalcy in a time of political upheaval?
Although he’s been in Congress since 2002, with key leadership roles throughout his tenure, Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen, 67, counts himself firmly in the anti-establishment camp.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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