Just as they did when they sparred in 2014’s mayoral Democratic primary, Councilmember Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) and former Mayor and Councilmember Vincent Gray (D-Ward 7) again topped the list of office-seekers earning high praise and ratings in the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance’s (GLAA) 2016 candidate questionnaire. Luckily, though, this year they are not opponents, but allies seeking separate seats on the D.C. Council.
The biennial survey, issued to candidates seeking elected positions within the District, is used to gauge candidates’ activism and responsiveness to the major concerns of the LGBT community. Candidates are rated on a scale of -10 to +10 based on their answers to GLAA’s questionnaire, their record on LGBT issues and any advocacy on behalf of the community. All questions are based on issues broached in GLAA’s annual policy brief, “Building on Victory,” which is made available to all candidates in advance.
So far, GLAA has only rated those candidates running in the primaries for the District’s three officially recognized political parties: Democrats, Republicans, and Statehood-Green members, all of whom will select nominees in the June 14 citywide primary election. The organization is expected to release ratings for independent candidates — including incumbent Councilmember David Grosso (I-At-Large), who is running for re-election — ahead of the November general election.
Both Evans, running unopposed for re-election to his Georgetown, Dupont and Downtown-anchored district, and Gray, who is running for the Southeast D.C.-anchored seat he once held before becoming Council Chairman in 2007, earned a top score of +10 on GLAA’s rating scale, which ranges from -10 to +10. Both men have long and substantial records that indicate a commitment to LGBT rights from their years on the Council, and Gray, during his four-year tenure as mayor.
Other strong scorers on GLAA’s candidate questionnaire were Robert White, who is challenging incumbent Vincent Orange (D-At-Large) in the Democratic primary, who earned a +8.5, as well as Councilmember LaRuby May (D-Ward 8) and G. Lee Aikin, running in for the Statehood-Green nomination for one of two at-large seats, who both earned +7.5.
For the two at-large seats, challenger David Garber earned a +6.5 for agreeing with GLAA’s positions on all issues and providing substantive answers, but lost points because of his limited record on LGBT issues. Meanwhile, incumbent Orange earned a +4, which marks a significant improvement over his 2012 GLAA rating of +0.5. GLAA noted in its writeup of Orange that he has generally been an ally to the LGBT community, but did, during his 2006 campaign for mayor, call some of his primary rivals “morally unfit” for office because of their support of marriage equality. Republican Carolina Celnik, a Navy Yard resident and law firm employee who works on regulatory issues, did not return a questionnaire and was given a zero based on her lack of a record on LGBT issues.
In Ward 4, Democratic challenger Leon Andrews earned a +6, besting incumbent Democratic Councilmember Brandon Todd, who earned a +5, and Calvin Gurley, who earned a +3.5. Challenger Ron Austin did not return a questionnaire and was given a zero rating.
In Ward 7, Gray faces off against incumbent Democratic Councilmember Yvette Alexander, the only remaining councilmember who voted against marriage equality in 2009. Alexander, who earned a +5.5, showed improvement over her 2012 rating of -3.5 and has generally been an ally to the LGBT community on the Council, sponsoring and pushing through her committee legislation allowing transgender people to amend their birth certificates, require health professionals receive training to be competent in dealing with LGBT-specific health issues, and banning the practice of conversion therapy on minors. Democrats Delmar Chesley and Grant Thompson did not submit responses to GLAA’s questionnaire.
In Ward 8, May’s challengers Trayon White and Aaron Holmes earned ratings of +4 and +2, respectively, while Maurice Dickens and Bonita Goode did not submit responses to GLAA’s questionnaire.
North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson emerged victorious in the Republican gubernatorial primary, putting the vehement opponent of LGBTQ rights one step closer to the governor's mansion.
If Robinson is victorious in November, his election will likely open the floodgates to a host of additional anti-LGBTQ legislation and executive actions that could make Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis look reasonable by comparison.
One of the loudest detractors of the LGBTQ community, Robinson pushed for and encouraged the Republican-dominated General Assembly to pass three anti-LGBTQ bills last year.
A Pennsylvania school board canceled an appearance by Maulik Pancholy at a local middle school's anti-bullying assembly due to concerns over his "lifestyle."
The Cumberland Valley School District school board voted unanimously to cancel the gay actor's scheduled May 22 appearance at Mountain View Middle School in Mechanicsburg, a town of 9,000 people in the state's center, just 10 miles outside Harrisburg.
Pancholy, who played Jonathan on the hit TV show 30 Rock, Sanjay in Weeds, and voiced the character of Baljeet for Disney's Phineas & Ferb, is also an author of novels for young adults, including The Best at It, the story of a gay Indian-American boy and his experience dealing with bullying in a small Midwestern town, and Nikhil Out Loud, about a group of eighth-grade theater kids rising up against homophobia in their community.
The construction of the highly anticipated LGBTQ nightclub "Town 2.0," which was slated to open in the former St. Phillip's Church building on North Capitol St. NE, has indefinitely stalled, raising questions about whether -- and when -- the promised nightlife venue will ever open.
On April 2, Town 2.0 LLC filed a lawsuit in D.C. Superior Court against Jemal's Sanctuary LLC, an affiliate of Douglas Development Corporation and the owner of the former St. Phillip's Church building. The lawsuit alleges breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation, and unjust enrichment.
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