Three Major LGBTQ Groups Endorse Biden’s Re-Election
Citing GOP-led efforts to roll back personal freedoms, advocates vow to mobilize pro-LGBTQ voters on the president's behalf.
Several major LGBTQ organizations have endorsed President Joe Biden’s re-election bid ahead of next year’s general election, citing Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’s staunch support for LGBTQ rights at a time when such freedoms are under attack in various state legislatures.
The Human Rights Campaign Political Action Committee, the National Center for Transgender Equality, and Equality PAC issued their first-ever joint endorsement on Tuesday, the day before National Coming Out Day and four days before Biden and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden are scheduled to deliver remarks at HRC’s National Dinner in Washington on Saturday, reports LGBTQ Nation.
The endorsement comes at a time when state legislatures have introduced a host of anti-LGBTQ legislation, with more than 550 bills introduced in nearly all states and more than 80 that have been signed into law this year.
The passage of those bills prompted the Human Rights Campaign to issue a “state of emergency” declaration in June warning LGBTQ people about the proliferation of such measures and advising them on how to navigate around restrictions imposed by the laws.
“At a time when the forces of hatred seek to divide us by race, place and identity, the choice in this election is clear,” Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. “LGBTQ+ Americans are living in a state of emergency and the leadership of the Biden-Harris administration is needed now more than ever…. We proudly endorse them.”
Among the victories advocates have pointed to are:
- President Biden’s signing of the Respect for Marriage Act, which ensures legal same-sex marriages will be recognized as valid by federal and state governments, into law.
- His administration’s opposition to book bans and gender-affirming care bans
- His Education Department’s commitment to protecting the rights of transgender students.
- The revocation of former President Donald Trump’s ban on transgender military members.
- The FDA’s revision of blood donation restrictions for gay and bisexual men.
“Without question, the Biden administration has been the strongest advocate for the needs of transgender Americans of any presidential administration in American history,” Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, executive director of the NCTE Action Fund, said in a statement.
Equality PAC, the political action arm of the LGBTQ+ Congressional Equality Caucus, hailed the Biden administration as “the most pro-equality administration in the history of the United States” and said the Biden-Harris ticket was worthy of re-election.
“The LGBTQ community is under seemingly constant attack from extremists that want to roll back history and take away the basic rights that we have fought for and won in recent years,” Equality PAC Co-Chairs Mark Takano (D-Calif.) and Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) said in a statement.
“Make no mistake, LGBTQ rights are on the ballot in 2024 — and Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are the only candidates where we can put our faith, trust, and vote next year.”
Each of the LGBTQ groups involved in the endorsement promised to do their part to aid the Biden-Harris campaign, including engaging in voter mobilization efforts in battleground states.
For instance, HRC PAC promised to activate its three million members and supporters with the aim of engaging with and mobilizing voters for whom a politician’s stance on LGBTQ rights is a top priority.
Similarly, NCTE Action Fund has committed to undertaking efforts to register thousands of transgender, nonbinary, and intersex voters nationwide and carrying out a voter education campaign to inform people of Biden’s stance on trans-specific issues.
Meanwhile, Equality PAC has promised to focus on electing more LGBTQ people and allies to Congress, with the intent of establishing partners with whom the Biden-Harris administration can work. The political action committee plans to carry out a targeted paid media campaign and engage in voter registration and mobilization efforts to ensure the election of these pro-equality politicians.
Biden-Harris Campaign Manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez thanked the LGBTQ groups for their support, and cast next year’s presidential election in stark terms.
“Next year’s election will determine whether LGBTQ+ Americans have more freedoms or less,” Chavez Rodriguez said in a statement. “Across the country, MAGA Republicans are hell-bent on taking away LGBTQ+ Americans’ hard-fought freedoms and are using our fellow Americans’ identities for political warfare. It’s shameful and not who we are as a country.
“The stakes of this election could not be higher for LGBTQ+ Americans, and President Biden and Vice President Harris are committed to fighting for every American’s fundamental freedoms,” she added. “We are deeply honored to earn this historic, unified endorsement from the nation’s leading LGBTQ+ groups.”
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