Delaware State Sen. Sarah McBride Launches Campaign to Become 1st Openly Trans Member of Congress

Delaware State Sen. Sarah McBride has launched a bid for Congress, seeking to become its first openly trans member. 

She's already made history. In 2020 she became the nation's first openly trans state senator, as well as the highest-ranking elected trans official in the country's history.

"In Delaware, we've proven that small states can do BIG things. It's time to do it again," McBride said on Twitter this week, announcing her campaign.

McBride is running for the seat currently occupied by Democratic Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, who has announced she will run for the U.S. Senate in 2024. 

The incumbent has endorsed McBride's quest for her seat, calling the state senator a "tireless advocate and trailblazer." 

McBride cited increased harassment of the trans and gay community in her campaign announcement, saying LGBTQ+ people have become the "scapegoat" of far-right policy failures.

"As they've increased their attacks on families and kids, it has become even clearer: for our democracy to work, it needs to include all of us," she said.

Delaware, the tiny home state of President Joe Biden, has just one seat in the U.S. House.

McBride has secured the endorsements of colleagues from the Delaware Legislature as well as advocacy groups including the Human Rights Campaign, where she previously served as press secretary.

"The Human Rights Campaign is proud to support Sen. Sarah McBride as she runs to represent the families of Delaware," president Kelley Robinson said in a statement Monday.

"Her advocacy is desperately needed in Congress, and her compassion and courage is what the people of Delaware deserve," Robinson said. 

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