LGBTQ+ candidates had a lot of success on Nov. 3 in races across the country, according to news outlet Them.

As Blavity previously
reported, New York Democrats Ritchie Torres and Mondaire Jones will be the first Black, openly gay members of Congress after winning their elections last Tuesday. 

But Jones and Torres are part of a much larger wave of LGBTQ+ candidates who secured victory on Election Day.

Shevrin Jones became the first out LGBTQ+ person to be elected to the upper chamber of the Florida State Senate and according to Out, Michele Reyner will become the first Black queer woman to hold a seat in the Florida House of Representatives.

Kim Jackson also won her election and will join the Georgia State Senate, making her the first LGBTQ+ person elected in the state's history. 

Them reported that Jones and Torres are two of the ten LGBTQ+ candidates to win seats or win reelection, with one tight New York race still pending. 

The outlet noted that several LGBTQ+ incumbents in Minnesota, California, Wisconsin, Rhode Island and New Hampshire also won reelection. 

Kansas Representative Sharice Davids, an LGBTQ+ member of Ho-Chunk Nation, won reelection, making her the first queer woman of color to do so. 

Human Rights Campaign president Alphonso David told Openly that the election marked a significant turning point for LGBTQ+ candidates across the country.

"Over the last three elections, the share of LGBTQ voters has continued to increase, solidifying our community as a key rising constituency that politicians must court," David said. "Our issues matter, our votes matter and politicians around the country have taken notice."

On the local level, several trans candidates, including Taylor Small and Stephanie Byers, won state legislature seats in Vermont and Kansas, respectively. 

Mauree Turner made history when she won her race in Oklahoma for state House District 88. According to CNN, Turner will be the state's first Muslim lawmaker and the first nonbinary state legislator in the country's history. 

"I have a lot of feelings about tonight. But overall, I'm grateful for HD88 granting me this opportunity. I hate SQ805 & so many other things slipped through our fingers… But I'm ready to fight hard as hell so they never do again," she wrote on Twitter. "Nothing About Us Without Us Let's go get 'em 88"

"It has never been a more important time for the next generation to see themselves in our government. It has never been a more important time for those closest to our state's problems to be structuring the solutions," Turner said back in February. 

In a statement to Openly, GLAAD president Sarah Kate Ellis lauded the wins and said it was a historic night for much of the country. 

"Tonight's wins for LGBTQ people of color and transgender Americans across the country are historic and long overdue," Ellis said.

"Their victories represent a leap forward for LGBTQ acceptance and a demand for more of the progress and equality that their very presence demonstrates," Ellis added. 

Jabari Brisport won his state senate race in New York, making him New York's first openly LGBT+ Black lawmaker.

"The more of us that run, the better. We have to keep pushing and open the door wider and wider for more of our queer siblings to enter politics as well and fight for an agenda that uplifts us as equal citizens like everyone else," Brisport told Openly. 

The LGBTQ Victory Institute released its 2020 Out for America report in July and highlighted the new wave of LGBTQ+ candidates who are taking office. 

The report found that there are now 843 known openly LGBTQ+ elected officials across the country, representing a 71% increase in queer elected officials since 2019.

"While LGBTQ people are running for office in historic numbers, we remain severely underrepresented at every level of government – and that must change. We know that when LGBTQ people are in elected office and in the halls of power, they change the hearts and minds of their colleagues and it leads to more inclusive legislation," said Annise Parker, president and CEO of the Victory Institute and the former mayor of Houston. 

As Blavity previously
reported, the study found that since the 2019 election season, there has been a 21% increase in LGBTQ+ elected officials and a 35% increase in LGBTQ+ mayors. Just 0.17% of political positions are held by members of the community despite the population of LGBTQ+ people being about 4.5% of the adult U.S. population. At least 22,000 more LGBTQ+ people need to be elected among the country's 519,682 elected positions in order to achieve true equity, according to the report. 

“Over the past year, LGBTQ elected officials have been on the frontlines — leading efforts to end racism, blocking bills targeting the trans community and passing legislation that moves equality forward for our community. Allies are important, but LGBTQ representation in the halls of power is critical to the success of our movement,” said Institute Vice President Ruben Gonzales in a statement. 

Election-Day-2020LGBTQ+-CandidatesMauree-TurnerMondaire-Jones