Danica Roem has made history. The 32-year-old transgender woman becomes the first openly-trans person to be elected to Virginia’s state legislature defeating her opponent Robert Marshall by over 2,000 votes, which translated to just over a nine-percent victory margin. Her historic victory makes her the second trans woman to ever be elected to state legislature in American history, the first being Althea Garrison who served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1993 to 1995.
What makes her victory even sweeter is that it comes against an opponent in Marshall who is considered one of the most fiercely anti-LGBTQ reps in the country. He refused to debate Roem in the leadup to the election, and also declined to refer to her as “she.” Now, the Democrat has a seat in Virginia’s House of Delegates at a key time when Democrats have been on the losing end of local elections for years.
A district that went GOP by 13% in '15 was won by a transgender Democrat tonight. https://t.co/2vcGo6Q3zC
— Tom Bonier (@tbonier) November 8, 2017
In an interview with Mother Jones, Roem made it clear that her election wasn’t solely based on civil rights: “Transgender people have really good public policy ideas that span the gamut of transportation policy to health care policy to education policy, and yes, to civil rights as well. We shouldn’t just be pigeonholed into the idea that we’re just going to be fighting about bathrooms.”
Ironically, Marshall authored one of those infamous “bathroom bills,” but now he’s gone.
Danica Roem didn't only win – she beat a vehemently anti-trans incumbent who called her "a guy who thinks he's a girl who wears a dress."
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) November 8, 2017
not official yet, but trans candidate danica roem is about to beat a 25-year incumbent with a hideously antigay record pic.twitter.com/G6CgsJvwow
— Christopher Hooks (@cd_hooks) November 8, 2017
The guy she beat, derisively referred to by opponents as "Bigot Bob" Marshall, sent out mailer reminding voters Roem was "born male." Didn't work. https://t.co/Kejs3so75X
— Joshua Green (JoshuaGreen.bsky.social on 🟦) (@JoshuaGreen) November 8, 2017
https://twitter.com/EricKleefeld/status/928062608179105792
Transgender freedom fighter Danica Roem has defeated right-wing bigot Bob Marshall best known for sponsoring the Virginia LGBTQ Marriage ban
— Alex Morash ❌ (@AlexMorash) November 8, 2017
https://twitter.com/SpaceDoctorPhD/status/928068121092612096