Among the West Coast U.S. House races being watched by LGBTQ politicos, a queer former Oakland resident has won a Washington State seat while a gay former federal prosecutor is close to flipping a Southern California seat into the Democrats' column.
In his rematch against conservative Congressmember Ken Calvert (R-Corona), having come close in 2022 to winning the Golden State's 41st Congressional District seat, Will Rollins currently has nearly 51% of the vote. With polls of their Palm Springs area contest showing it neck-and-neck headed into Election Day, it could be several days before the race is decided.
Rollins suggested as much in a statement his campaign sent out roughly 50 minutes after the polls closed Tuesday night.
"The voter turnout in this election has been great to see, and we respect the Registrar's process to ensure that everyone's voice is heard," stated Rollins. "My team and I are deeply grateful to everyone who donated their time and money to power our campaign, and most of all to everyone who cast a ballot toward helping us flip the 41st. Over the coming days, we will continue to closely monitor election returns and provide additional updates."
Meanwhile, Emily Randall has added the Evergreen State to the list of West Coast states with out congressional representation. After surviving a bruising primary in August, defeating a fellow Democrat to face off against a Republican in a blue district, the Washington state senator has easily won the open 6th District U.S. House.
According to the unofficial returns, Randall is in first place with 57% of the vote. She is poised to become the first LGBTQ Latina sent to Congress.
Her opponent, Republican state Senator Drew C. MacEwen, conceded shortly after the first returns were posted. In a post on X he said he had called to congratulate Randall on her win.
She declared victory shortly after 9 p.m. Tuesday night.
"We did more than win this election: we made history. Together, we shattered three glass ceilings," stated Randall, a one-time staffer at the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. "When I take office in January, I will become the first congresswoman and first person of color to hold this seat, the first openly LGBTQ person to represent Washington state in Congress, and the first ever queer Latina member of Congress."
California House races
As for several Bay Area congressional races, gay Assemblymember Evan Low (D-Cupertino) is trailing in his bid for the open 16th Congressional District seat spanning Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. He is currently at 40% of the vote.
Fellow Democrat Sam Liccardo, the former mayor of San Jose, is in first place with nearly 60% of the vote. The victor will succeed Congressmember Anna Eshoo (D-Palo Alto), who opted to retire rather than seek another term on the November 5 ballot.
In the East Bay race to succeed retiring Congressmember Barbara Lee (D-Oakland), fellow Democrat BART board member Lateefah Simon, a straight ally, has a commanding lead at 63% of the vote. Lee, having lost her March primary race for the state's junior U.S. Senate seat, had endorsed Simon in the race.
Trailing with 37% of the early vote is Jennifer Kim-Anh Tran, Ph.D., a queer leader within the state's Vietnamese American community. She had always been viewed as the underdog in the race for the 12th Congressional District seat centered in Oakland and lost support last month from the lone LGBTQ group that had endorsed after saying in a social media post she didn't support gender-affirming care for transgender youth.
Two gay progressives in rematches with their 2022 straight incumbent opponents for Los Angeles area House seats are also currently trailing. Derek Marshall is at almost 43% of the vote in his race against Congressmember Jay Obernolte (R-Hesperia) for the 23rd Congressional District in the high desert areas east of the city.
In the race for the 34th Congressional District seat, lawyer David Kim is in second with 43% of the vote behind Congressmember Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles). Should Kim pull off an upset, he would be the first out Korean American elected to Congress.
As expected, gay Congressmembers Mark Takano (D-Riverside) and Robert Garcia (D-Long Beach) have both easily won their reelection bids. Garcia has 65% of the vote in his contest for the 42nd Congressional District seat.
"Thank you, Long Beach and Southeast Los Angeles for a strong win and for sending me back to Congress. I am committed to continue fighting for California and the workers and people who power our community. Onward," stated Garcia.
Takano took first place with 57% of the vote in his race for the 39th Congressional District seat. He is particularly following closely Rollins' race, having been outed by Calvert when he ran against him in 1994 in a differently drawn House district.
Due to the 2020 redistricting process, Calvert now represents the LGBTQ resort and retirement mecca of Palm Springs. Because of the more Democratic makeup of his House district, he barely eked out a victory over Rollins two years ago.
This election cycle saw Rollins rack up significant support from the Democratic Party and liberal groups, as his race could help the party retake control of the House. He also raised a record amount in fundraising this year, giving him a strong edge to be able to flip the seat.
Both national and state-based LGBTQ groups, such as Equality California, funneled resources and volunteers into the race. EQCA Managing Director of External Affairs Tom Temprano decamped from his San Francisco home for Southern California last week to spend the final days of the 2024 election on the ground assisting Rollins' campaign and that of several other candidates in the region.
"He will win, and it will be more decisive than people expect come tomorrow," Temprano had predicted to the Bay Area Reporter on Monday.
Less certain ahead of Election Day was if Low could survive his bruising battle for the open South Bay House seat. He and Liccardo had engaged in an increasingly negative contest following their March primary race.
Low accused Liccardo of orchestrating the recount of their primary race in an attempt to oust him from the November 5 ballot. At first it appeared Low and Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian (D) would both run against Liccardo on the fall ballot due to their being tied for second in the primary.
But after a former Liccardo staffer called for a recount, Low emerged the sole second-place winner by five votes. It kicked off months of sniping between his and Liccardo's campaign over everything from campaign finance violations to who had the most support among their Democratic elected colleagues.
In a Hail Mary attempt to bolster his chances, Low in late October rolled out a last-minute endorsement from Governor Gavin Newsom. LGBTQ advocacy groups had also poured money into the race to help Low pull off a win and become the first out congressional member from the Bay Area.
As of now, it appears Low has fallen short of that goal.
Editor's note: This story will be updated as new vote totals are released.
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