The AP has called the race in Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional district for Rep. Angie Craig (D), bringing the total of LGBTQ people in Congress next session up to 10.
That number could go up to 11 if Rep. Sean Maloney is declared the winner of his race in New York’s 18th District, where he is currently leading against his Republican opponent.
Related: Out House candidates who faced vicious anti-LGBTQ attacks lose their races
Republicans allegedly tried to spoil the election by paying a Donald Trump supporter $15,000 to mount a campaign in Craig’s district with the Legal Marijuana Now Party. The idea was that some people who support marijuana legalization would vote for the third party instead of Craig.
Never Miss a Beat
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights.
Local Republicans deny the allegations.
The third party candidate died last month. According to state law, if a major party candidate dies within 79 days of an election, a special election must be scheduled, and the Legal Marijuana Now Party is considered a major party under state law. The election would have been moved to a special election in February 2021 if not for a federal court decision.
Craig’s Republican opponent, Tyler Kistner, said he would try to overturn the result, saying that the special election should have happened.
Craig won with 48.2% of the vote and Kistner has 46.0%.
I am so thrilled to announce that I will be back to represent the Second District! https://t.co/yyjA99NWIU
— Angie Craig (@AngieCraigMN) November 4, 2020
Out candidate Beth Doglio in Washington lost her bid for the U.S. House.
Out Representatives Sharice Davids (D-KS), Chris Pappas (D-NH), David Cicilline (D-RI), Mark Takano (D-CA), and Mark Pocan (D-WI) have all won their reelection campaigns for the U.S. House, and newcomers Ritchie Torres and Mondaire Jones – both from New York – won their elections.
This means that there are going to be at least eight out LGBTQ members of the House next session and two out U.S. senators: Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ).
