Woman fired by sheriff ‘because she’s a lesbian’ just knocked her old boss out of the race for his own office
Charmaine McGuffey wants to become her state’s first out female LGBT+ person to be elected sheriff (Twitter/@CharmMcGuffey)
A lesbian deputy sheriff has just won the Democratic primary for her state, beating the boss who allegedly fired her because of her sexuality.
Charmaine McGuffey is currently suing Hamilton county sheriff Jim Neil, claiming he fired her from her position as major of the jail and court services because she is a woman and a lesbian.
She challenged him outside the courts, too, by running against him in the Democratic primary for sheriff – and she just won nearly 70 per cent of the vote.
As a new candidate competing against an incumbent in a primary it was a rare victory for McGuffey, and it had to be a particularly humiliating defeat for Neil after serving two consecutive terms as sheriff.
McGuffey will now face Bruce Hoffbauer, a Cincinnati police lieutenant who was the only candidate in the Republican primary.
If she beats him in November she’ll become the first female LGBT+ sheriff in her state – a huge achievement, particularly in light of the discrimination she says she experienced from Neil.
I can’t thank everyone enough for your support, endorsements and your vote! You helped make history happen! On to November. #mcguffeyforsheriff #votemcguffey2020 pic.twitter.com/7IglgMJWNf
— Charmaine McGuffey (@CharmMcGuffey) April 29, 2020
“The current sheriff and I got into a pretty serious disagreement about the practice of him not holding officers accountable for use of force and harassment of women, female officers, and female inmates,” McGuffey previously told LGBTQ Nation.
He fired me. So after about a year or so of contemplating, I decided I can do a better job than him.
Neil denies this, claiming that she was fired because she created a hostile work environment and bullied colleagues, but McGuffey maintains it was because she spoke out against the toxic working culture as both a woman and a lesbian.
In any case, the residents of Hamilton county made clear where their allegiances lie, and it wasn’t with Neil.
In my career, I have seen justice & I have seen injustice. The time for justice reform is here and it’s now. I am running for Sheriff because effective reform is fiscally responsible & makes our communities safer. I will lead with transparency & humanity. Vote McGuffey March 17. pic.twitter.com/xCf54ucsYY
— Charmaine McGuffey (@CharmMcGuffey) January 24, 2020
“I was a little surprised,” McGuffey told Local12. “I knew we would win by a margin. I didn’t know it would be that large.”
According to Cincinnati.com, Neil’s conservative politics frustrated many Hamilton county Democrats, who had not forgotten his appearance on stage in 2016 at rally for Donald Trump.
“Quite frankly, my opponent has pretended to be a Democrat for many years now, when he’s actually much more aligned with the Tea Party Republicans,” McGuffey said.
“He tells people what they want to hear and then doesn’t follow through.”
If McGuffey is successful she intends to revamp the whole sheriff’s office, starting with accountability and justice reform.
