No LGBTQ person has ever been elected to the Philadelphia City Council
Washington, DC – Today LGBTQ Victory Fund, the only national organization dedicated to electing LGBTQ leaders to public office, endorsed 18 new openly LGBTQ candidates for the 2019 election cycle. Three of the new endorsees are candidates for the Philadelphia City Council – which has never had an openly LGBTQ member. Adrian Rivera-Reyes and Deja Lynn Alvarez, both running for at-large seats, secured the first and second spots on the primary ballot, respectively. Those ballot positions and their robust campaigns make them strong contenders for the May primary election. Lauren Vidas, running for District 2 of the Philadelphia City Council, is also a strong contender. All three would be historic firsts if they win on Election Day.
“While Philadelphia has a vibrant LGBTQ community, they have never had representation on the city council whose legislation and policies deeply affect their lives,” said Mayor Annise Parker, President & CEO of LGBTQ Victory Fund. “Now we have three opportunities to change that, with extraordinary and diverse LGBTQ candidates who will each bring unique and important perspectives to the council when elected. Philadelphians have an opportunity to make history come November – and Victory Fund is all in to help make it happen.”
Among the other endorsees announced today is Alex Giorgio-Rubin, running for an at-large seat on the South Bend, Indiana Common Council. A victory for Giorgio-Rubin is critical to maintaining LGBTQ representation in South Bend’s city government after Mayor Pete Buttigieg announced he would not seek a third term.
A complete list of candidate endorsements announced today is below:
General Candidates:
Candi CdeBaca, Denver City Council, District 9
LaWana Mayfield, Charlotte City Council, At-Large
Stephen Napier, Mayor of Cohoes (NY)
Adrian Rivera-Reyes, Philadelphia City Council, At-Large
Deja Lynn Alvarez, Philadelphia City Council, At-Large
Lauren Vidas, Philadelphia City Council, District 2
Xavier Garcia-Molina, Lancaster (PA) City Council, At-Large
Lori Schreiber, Montgomery County (PA) Clerk of Courts
Zach Young, Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County
Erin Moore, Dallas City Council, District 9
Joshua Carter Guerra, Socorro (TX) ISD Board of Trustees, District 1
Alex Giorgio-Rubin, South Bend (IN) Common Council, At-Large
Incumbent Candidates:
Denise Simmons, Cambridge (MA) City Council, At-Large
Lizbeth DeSelm, Melrose (MA) School Committee, At-Large
Michael DeFusco, Hoboken (NJ) City Council, Ward 1
Matt Hughes, Hillsborough (NC) Board of Commissioners, At-Large
Brett Withers, Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County
Adam Medrano, Dallas City Council, District 2
This is Victory Fund’s fourth round of endorsements for the 2019 election cycle. The organization has now endorsed 64 openly LGBTQ candidates across the country.
More information about the candidates is available at victoryfund.org/ourcandidates.
Since 1991, Victory Fund has helped thousands of openly LGBTQ candidates win local, state and federal elections.
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LGBTQ Victory Fund
LGBTQ Victory Fund works to change the face and voice of America’s politics and achieve equality for LGBTQ Americans by increasing the number of openly LGBTQ elected officials at all levels of government.
