Former journalist Danica Roem decisively defeated Virginia Delegate Bob Marshall, by a 54-46 margin, to become the first openly transgender elected and seated state legislature in the history of the United States.
Marshall, who wrote Virginia’s “bathroom bill” and was its self-styled “chief homophobe,” refused to debate Roem, and consistently misgendered her throughout the campaign.
Roem’s campaign centered on her promise to unsnarl traffic on Virginia State Route 28.
She argued that “Delegate Marshall’s legislative priorities are more concerned with where I go to the bathroom than how you get to work.”
Roem’s victory came on a night when more than 35 LGBT+ candidates won elections.
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