LGBTQ Victory Fund sat down with Daniel Hernández Jr., to share his story about his decision to run for Congressional Office.
Daniel Hernández Jr. is running to represent Arizona’s 6th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives. If elected, Daniel will be the first out LGBTQ Mexican American elected to Congress.
What inspired you to run for Arizona’s 6th Congressional District?
I was born and raised in this community which makes the opportunity to represent it in Congress even more exciting. I am the son of a Mexican immigrant and a construction worker who wants to represent all the families like mine who care about sending their kids to a good school and having enough money to pay the bills. In college I interned for Congresswoman Gabby Giffords who introduced me to the idea of advocacy. It is an honor to now run for her old seat.
As a survivor of gun violence, and as someone who experienced a school shooting on my college campus, what measures would you take to prevent future gun violence in public spaces across the country?
It’s time to stand up to the NRA and fight back against complacency on gun violence prevention to make our communities safer. As a survivor of the 2011 Tucson shooting that killed 6 and injured 13, I know firsthand the consequences of failing to stop the epidemic of gun violence in our county. After surviving the shooting, I became a national leader calling for common-sense gun safety reforms like universal background checks. I want to bring the perspective of a survivor to Congress and to deliver tangible results like closing the gun show loophole and passing red flag laws to make it harder for people who should not have access to guns to not have them.
If elected, what are the top issues you will advocate for in the U.S. House of Representatives?
The most important thing I will work on when I get to Congress is protecting a woman’s right to choose. The Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade is devastating, and we have to act with real urgency to allow access to abortion. I am also laser focused on fighting inflation and strengthening our economy. From rising costs at the pump and the grocery store, to the soaring price of prescription drugs, everyday life is getting far too expensive for too many Arizonans. We need solutions that will make a real difference in people’s pocketbooks.
With reproductive healthcare eliminated in so many states and in danger elsewhere, what actions do you think Congress should take to protect a person’s right to privacy and reproductive access?
The threat to the freedom to choose has never been greater. It is long past time to codify Roe and protect abortion rights once and for all. I have long been in the fight to protect a woman’s right to choose and to reproductive health care, including working at Planned Parenthood as the program manager for Raíz, the Arizona-based Latino outreach program. In the state legislature, I have spent the last six years fighting back against extremist bills to ban abortion completely. The stakes in this election couldn’t be clearer: My opponent wants to make all abortions illegal, with no exceptions for rape and incest. We must fight back to keep politicians out of our personal health care decisions.
Justice Thomas stated he would like to see marriage equality and other pro-LGBTQ cases reexamined. Given his thoughts and the many anti-LGBTQ+ bills passed across the country, what actions would you take to protect the rights of the LGBTQ community in Congress?
We must act quickly to protect marriage at the federal level. Republican legislators are attacking the LGBTQ community across the country. We have to fight back not just to protect the right to marry who you love but also to protect trans kids who are being systematically targeted and discriminated against.
As someone who began public service at a young age, first elected to the Sunnyside School Board and later the Arizona Legislature, what advice would you give to young people interested in pursuing political office?
If you wait until you’re ready, you’ll never get started. Young people bring a fresh perspective and shouldn’t let a fear of what you don’t know prevent you from making a difference. I joined the Sunnyside School Board at 21 and did a lot of learning on the job and ended up serving as the board’s president. We are always told to wait our turn by the establishment but if we do that, we will never have a “turn” as people from marginalized communities.
As a co-founder of the Arizona LGBTQ Caucus, what obstacles did you face fighting for the LGBTQ community in the Arizona legislature and what actions did you take to protect LGBTQ Arizonans?
When I was serving on the school board my political opponents passed out the fliers saying I wasn’t a real man. It was horrifying to see them stoop so low. But I know that serving my community gives kids who grew up like me will have someone to look up to. You can be a member of the LGBTQ community and go on to accomplish great things. We passed a repeal of No Promo Homo in 2019 a law that made it illegal to even talk about the existence of the LGBTQ community in Az public schools.
More information about all of Victory Fund’s endorsed candidates is available at victoryfund.org/ourcandidates. Since 1991, Victory Fund has helped thousands of out LGBTQ+ candidates win local, state and federal elections.
