Ashley Brundage is one of two out transgender candidates running for a seat in the Florida House of Representatives.
NBC News spoke with seven transgender candidates who are running for seats in state legislatures nationwide about what they hope to accomplish if they are elected.
Courtesy Lisa Middleton CampaignA steady riseAt least 18 out trans candidates are running for seats in state legislatures this election cycle, according to the LGBTQ Victory Fund, a super PAC focused on electing LGBTQ candidates.
They are running against a national political backdrop in which trans people have come to play an outsized role.
Trans candidates’ presence on ballots has only continued to rise since 2017, when Virginia’s Danica Roem became the first out trans person elected to a state legislature.
Persons:
Ashley Brundage, Ron DeSantis, Brundage, DeSantis, she’d, DeSantis —, —, ” Brundage, ”, Lisa Middleton, Donald Trump, Gabriele Magni, ” Trump, Magni, there’s, Virginia’s Danica Roem, hasn’t, Sarah McBride, Sean Meloy, McBride, Nathan Bruemmer, Middleton, it’s, “, Kim Coco Iwamoto, Lorna Woo, Veronica Pejril, Pejril, Wick Thomas, ” Thomas, Transphobia, ‘, ” Iwamoto, Thomas, they’ve, Babe Pejril, It’s, ” Pejril
Organizations:
Republican, NBC, Democratic, City Council, Victory Fund, Pew Research, Loyola Marymount University, LGBTQ Victory Institute, Delaware Senate, Democrat, Florida Legislature, Florida Department of Agriculture, Consumer Services, Indiana Senate, Missouri, NBC News, Gun Safety
Locations:
Florida, California, Palm Springs, Calif, Los Angeles, Delaware, Tampa, Hawaii, Indiana, Greencastle, Council