Sarah McBride becomes the first out trans person in Congress

Democrat Sarah McBride has won Delaware’s only House seat and become the first out trans person elected to congress, polling outlets have projected.

McBride, who made history in 2020 as the the first trans woman to be elected to a state senate, defeated Republican John Whalen III on Tuesday (5 November) to make history once again and win Delaware’s at-large seat.

The 34-year-old took 57.6 per cent of the vote with 63 per cent of the state’s votes in, NBC News and The New York Times reported.

Celebrating the news on social media, McBride wrote in a statement: “Thank you, Delaware! Because of your votes and your values, I am proud to be your next member of Congress.

“Delaware has sent the message loud and clear that we must be a country that protects reproductive freedom, that guarantees paid leave and affordable child care for all our families, that ensures that housing and health care are available to everyone and that this is a democracy that is big enough for all of us.”

Thank you, Delaware! Because of your votes and your values, I am proud to be your next member of Congress.

Delaware has sent the message loud and clear that we must be a country that protects reproductive freedom, that guarantees paid leave and affordable child care for all our… pic.twitter.com/QgwRkpUlbD

— Sen. Sarah McBride (@SarahEMcBride) November 6, 2024

In response to McBride’s win, GLAAD president Sarah Kate Ellis called her election to congress “groundbreaking for the transgender community and our entire country”.

She said: “Sarah is a spectacular public servant who works her heart out to improve people’s lives.

“Sarah’s win is a victory for transgender visibility, and should serve as a reminder that trans people should of course be free to be themselves and contribute their talents however they wish.

“Her voice and presence will ensure that Congress better represents the best of America. Congratulations to Sarah and to her constituents on this historic milestone that will accelerate acceptance for all transgender people.”

Prior to election day, McBride hoped that a trans person such as herself in congress would encourage “empathy” for the community.

Speaking to reporters at Delaware State University in October, she said: “It is a testament to Delawarians that the candidacy of someone like me is even possible.

“Folks know I am personally invested in equality as an LGBTQ+ person. But my priorities are going to be affordable child care, paid family and medical leave, housing, health care, reproductive freedom.”

She noted back then that if she won she would not be “the first person in congress to be part of a community that Donald Trump has said outrageous things about”.

She said of members of congress who attack trans people: “I think the ones who are really caught up on this, the folks who are professional provocateurs, they’re not gonna work with any Democrat. They can barely work with their own Republican colleagues.

“We know throughout history that the power of proximity has opened even the most-closed of hearts and minds. And I still believe that the power of proximity taps the most fundamental human emotion: empathy.”