LGBTQ Victory Fund Endorses 23 LGBTQ Candidates, Including Patrick Branco in Hawaii and Erick Russell in Connecticut

News Release from LGBTQ Victory Fund, June 22, 2022

Washington, DC – Today LGBTQ Victory Fund, the only national organization dedicated to electing LGBTQ leaders to public office, endorsed 23 more out LGBTQ candidates. Victory Fund has now endorsed 314 candidates running in the 2022 midterms.

Candidates given Game Changer status include Patrick Branco who is running for the U.S. House of Representatives in Hawaii and Erick Russell who is running for Connecticut State Treasurer. Branco would be the first out LGBTQ member of Congress from Hawaii and Russell would be the first Black out LGBTQ person ever elected statewide in U.S. history.

Mayor Annise Parker, President & CEO of LGBTQ Victory Fund, released the following statement about the endorsements:

“Pride month is a time to take stock of our community’s history so that we can get organized and fired up about the work we still have ahead of us. From Congress to school boards, LGBTQ people remain woefully underrepresented in government – we must still elect over 35,000 out LGBTQ people to office to achieve equitable representation. With the current rise in anti-LGBTQ vitriol, we are witnessing firsthand the impact this lack of representation has on our community and LGBTQ kids in particular. We are proud to continue supporting highly-qualified leaders ready to tackle these issues head on and be our voice in the halls of power. LGBTQ candidates represent the best of us – they are determined, tough and ready to devote themselves to a life of service. We are confident they will be strong legislators and inspire other LGBTQ people to run for office.”

The complete list of candidate endorsements announced today is below:

Game Changer Endorsements

Patrick Branco (he/him)

U.S. House of Representatives, HI-02

Primary: 8/13/2022

General: 11/8/2022

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