A transgender woman beat the author of a bathroom bill in VA and her victory response is epic!

by Jen Hayden

Community

(This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday, Nov. 08, 2017 Wednesday, Nov. 08, 2017 at 5:19:26am PST

Democratic nominee for the House of Delegates 13th district seat, Danica Roem, gets a hug from supporter and local resident, Godfrey Wade, as she canvasses a neighborhood Wednesday, June 21, 2017, in Manassas, Va. Roem, who was an experienced local newspaper reporter, talks openly about her gender identity but has made jobs, traffic and teacher pay the focus of her campaign. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) — It's a new day!

Of all the victories last night, Danica Roem’s election to the Virginia House of Delegates was perhaps the sweetest. Not only did the Daily Kos-endorsed candidate make history by becoming the first transgender woman to represent in the House of Delegates, she beat the bigoted author of the bathroom bill presented to the Virginia House of Delegates last year. From the Richmond Times-Dispatch:

Democrat Danica Roem ousted longtime incumbent Del. Robert Marshall, R, Tuesday, according to preliminary returns, becoming the first openly transgender elected official in Virginia - and one of very few in the nation.

The race between Roem, 33, and Marshall, 73, focused on traffic and other local issues in Prince William County but also exposed the nation's fault lines over gender identity.

Yes, Danica Roem did run to oppose the bigoted policies of Marshall, but she wasn’t a one-note song. She ran on a progressive platform. In an inspirational speech last night (seen below), she implored the crowd to follow her lead and run for office, “if you have good public policy ideas and you are well qualified, bring those ideas to the table!”

And what was her response to a question about her opponent Bob “Mr. Bathroom Bill” Marshall? Epic.

When asked about Bob Marshall, Danica Roem said Ã¢ÂÂI don't attack my constituents. Bob is my constituent now.Ã¢ÂÂ

She has more grace and composure than I will ever have. #virginia #DanicaRoem
Ã¢ÂÂ Nicholas Trevino (@BlyTarbell) November 8, 2017

In fact, Roem was one of three transgender candidates across the nation who won big last night. She is joined by Andrea Jenkins, who was elected to the Minneapolis City Council, and Lisa Middleton, who was elected to the Palm Springs City Council.

So proud of movement auntie, Andrea Jenkins, who became the first openly trans woman of color elected to the city council of a major U.S. city. SheÃ¢ÂÂll represent Ward 8 of Minneapolis! So much history being made tonight! #AJ4W8 #TransFolksCanWin #ElectionDay pic.twitter.com/AJqvDt9E7q
Ã¢ÂÂ Raquel Willis (@RaquelWillis_) November 8, 2017

Lisa Middleton, who just won a city council seat in Palm Springs, will be California's first openly transgender non-judicial elected official https://t.co/4icC6X4s7y pic.twitter.com/WEcIOs8c5y
Ã¢ÂÂ Casey Tolan (@caseytolan) November 8, 2017

Listen to Danica Roem fire up the crowd in her victory speech last night. It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, America! Let’s keep this rolling into the 2018 midterm elections!

Powerful statement from @pwcdanica, first transgender member of VA assembly. Watch this: pic.twitter.com/d5fZ43vSCF
Ã¢ÂÂ Will Drabold (@WillDrabold) November 8, 2017

Wednesday, Nov 8, 2017 · 2:19:21 PM +00:00 · Jen Hayden

Looks like Bob Marshall’s sister weighed in on the election results as well:

AMAZING pic.twitter.com/zS67j3zYl7
Ã¢ÂÂ A-A-Ron (@AaronTheH) November 8, 2017