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Michelle Bachelet regains Chilean presidency

Socialist backs same-sex marriage, transgender rights bill

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Michelle Bachelet, Chile, Socialist Party, gay news, Washington Blade

Michelle Bachelet (Photo by Ricardo Stuckert of Agência Brasil; courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

Chilean voters on Sunday elected former President Michelle Bachelet as their country’s next president.

Bachelet defeated Evelyn Matthei by a 62-38 percent margin in the second round of voting in the South American nation’s presidential elections. The former president on Nov. 17 defeated her main rival in the first round of voting, but she needed at least 50 percent of the vote to avoid a run-off.

The Associated Press reported only 41 percent of voters turned out during the second round of voting.

“It is time to put ourselves to work, to put an end to inequality, to realize this dream of everyone,” said Bachelet during her victory speech in Santiago, the Chilean capital, according to the newspaper El Mercurio. “It is time to build a stronger and better democracy.”

Bachelet, a left-leaning Socialist whose father was tortured to death following the 1973 coup that toppled then-President Salvador Allende’s government, vowed to address long-standing socio-economic inequalities in Chile and reform the South American nation’s education system during the campaign. She also supports marriage rights for same-sex couples and a proposal that would allow transgender Chileans to legally change their name and sex without sex-reassignment surgery, hormonal treatments and psychiatric or psychological evaluations.

“It is a position of absolute support that has been included in her governing platform,” Andrés Ignacio Duarte Rivera, founder of the Organization of Transsexuals for the Dignity of Diversity, told the Washington Blade during an International Lesbian and Gay Human Rights Commission briefing he attended in New York on Dec. 11.

Bachelet’s platform also supports efforts to strengthen Chile’s LGBT-inclusive hate crimes and anti-discrimination law named in honor of Daniel Zamudio, a 24-year-old man whom a group of self-described neo-Nazis beat to death inside a Santiago park in 2012 because he was gay. The convicted mastermind of the attack against Zamudio received a life sentence in October.

“Congratulations to Bachelet,” tweeted Jaime Parada Hoyl, spokesperson for the Chilean LGBT advocacy group Movement for Homosexual Integration who in November 2012 became the first openly gay political candidate elected in the South American country. “We will be here when you need to push through the changes that the conservatives… will try to block.”

Santiago resident Leandro Ignacio Díaz Castro also welcomed the election’s outcome.

“I am very happy with Bachelet’s big victory,” Díaz told the Blade as he listed same-sex marriage, free and quality education and a new labor code as among the former president’s campaign promises. “I am happy because I know that better times are coming for Chile.”

Bachelet was Chile’s president from 2006-2010.

She will succeed outgoing President Sebastián Piñera and officially take office early next year.

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Hungary

New Hungarian prime minister takes office

Péter Magyar’s party defeated anti-LGBTQ Viktor Orbán last month

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Péter Magyar votes in Budapest, Hungary on April 12, 2026. He has been sworn in as the country's new prime minister. (Screen capture via APT/YouTube)

Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar took office on Saturday.

Magyar’s center-right Tisza party on April 12 defeated then-Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz-KDNP coalition. Vice President JD Vance less than a week before the election traveled to Budapest, the Hungarian capital, and urged Hungarians to support Orbán.

Orbán had been in office since 2010. He and his government faced widespread criticism over its anti-LGBTQ crackdown.

The European Commission in 2022 sued Hungary, which is a member of the EU, over the country’s anti-LGBTQ propaganda law. The European Union’s top court, the EU Court of Justice, on April 21 struck down the statute.

The EU while Orbán was office withheld upwards of €35 billion ($41.26) in funds to Hungary in response to concerns over corruption, rule of law, and other issues.

Hungarian lawmakers in March 2025 passed a bill that banned Pride events and allowed authorities to use facial recognition technology to identify those who participate in them. MPs later amended the Hungarian constitution to ban public LGBTQ events.

Upwards of 100,000 people last June defied the ban and marched in Budapest’s annual Pride parade.

“Congratulations to [Péter Magyar] on becoming prime minister of Hungary,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on X.

“This Europe Day, our hearts are in Budapest,” she added. “The hope and promise of renewal is a powerful signal in these challenging times.”

“We have important work ahead of us,” noted von der Leyen. “For Hungary and for Europe, we are moving forward together.”

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Comings & Goings

Whitman-Walker honors Rep. Sarah McBride

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U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.) (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected]

Congratulations to Congresswoman Sarah McBride (D-Del.) on being honored with this year’s Stonewall Award from Whitman-Walker Health. Amy Nelson, senior director of Legal Services, said, “Congresswoman Sarah McBride is working to make healthcare accessible to all, and this award recognizes her support of healthcare as a human right. Our legal program supports families facing unprecedented challenges to stay healthy and safe – families that Congresswoman McBride champions with a deep understanding of the issues they face and the legislative expertise of how to support them.”  

McBride, in a press release, said, “I am honored to accept this year’s Stonewall Award from Whitman-Walker Health — an organization that has spent 40 years doing vital work to ensure every person can access the dignity of care. In the wealthiest and most developed nation on earth, the ability to receive care should not be a matter of luck—it should be the law of the land. I am proud to be recognized as a partner in this work and to support Whitman-Walker Health in their mission to build a healthier society for all.”

Congratulations also to Wes Drummond who will join Clear Space Theatre Company in Rehoboth Beach, Del., as its third artistic director. Managing Director Joe Gfaller said, “This is an exciting moment of growth for Clear Space as we welcome Wes to join our remarkable team. I am confident he will be an excellent partner as we work with our entire staff, board, and committed team of volunteers, to ensure Clear Space can achieve its full potential in pursuit of our mission to unite and enrich our community through every production on stage, and every arts-based learning program we offer throughout our community.” 

On accepting the position Drummond said, “I’m honored to join Clear Space Theatre Company as artistic director, and beyond excited for what we’re about to create together. Clear Space has established itself as a vital and vibrant part of the cultural life of coastal Delaware, and I feel incredibly fortunate to step into this next chapter alongside such a passionate and dedicated team. Rehoboth Beach is a place defined by creativity and community, and I look forward to listening, learning, and building meaningful relationships across the region in the months ahead. My vision is to help Clear Space continue to grow as a bold, forward-thinking, cultural force, that champions fearless storytelling.”

Wes Drummond

Drummond served in leadership roles at Duluth Playhouse in Duluth, Minn., from 2021 to 2026, including four years as executive director followed by one year as executive producing artistic director, guiding the organization through a period of significant transformation and stability in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a director, he has worked extensively in New York City, Chicago, and at regional theaters across the country, directing both musical theater and plays with a focus on storytelling that bridges classical works with contemporary perspectives. He has collaborated with leading figures in the industry, including Tony Award-winning director Matthew Warchus, and Tony-nominated director Michael Greif. He is an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

Wes earned his MFA in directing, Penn State University, where he studied under Tony-nominated director, Susan H. Schulman. 

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Virginia

Va. Supreme Court invalidates Democrat-backed redistricting plan

Voters narrowly approved new congressional districts last month

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Virginia Supreme Court (Photo by sainaniritu/Bigstock)

The Virginia Supreme Court on Friday struck down a Democrat-backed redistricting plan that voters approved last month.

Ten of 11 of Virginia’s congressional districts favor Democrats in the plan that passed by a 51-48 vote margin in last month’s referendum.

The Human Rights Campaign PAC is among the groups that support it. The court by a 4-3 majority invalidated the referendum results.

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