As of 2024, more transgender elected officials than ever are serving in government, according to the Victory Institute.
Here’s a GIF look at 11 trans legislators who are making history in 2024.
1. Montana state Rep. Zooey Zephyr
Montana state Rep. Zooey Zephyr made history in 2022, becoming the state’s first trans elected official.
Zephyr defeated Republican Sean McCoy by 62.6 points with 79.2 percent of the vote.
2. Minnesota state Rep. Leigh Finke
Minnesota state Rep. Leigh Finke also made history in 2022, becoming the state’s first trans elected official.
Finke represents District 66A in the Minnesota House of Representatives.
3. Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride
Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride is one of two of the nation’s highest-ranking trans elected officials.
McBride was first elected in 2020: she made history then as the nation’s first trans state senator.
4. Virginia state Sen. Danica Roem
Virginia state Sen. Danica Roem made history in 2023 as the first transgender person to be elected to the state Senate.
Roem was elected to Virginia’s 30th District by four points with 52 percent of the vote.
Roem made history on several fronts in 2023: she became the first transgender person to be elected to any state Senate in the South and the first transgender person in U.S. history to serve in both chambers of a state legislature.
5. West Virginia councilwoman Rosemary Ketchum
West Virginia councilwoman Rosemary Ketchum made history in 2020 as the state’s first transgender elected official.
Ketchum won a close race for a seat on the Wheeling City Council. She beat her opponent by 2.1 points.
Ketchum is currently running for the mayorship in Wheeling. If she wins, Ketchum would make history as the second woman to serve as the Mayor of Wheeling and the first transgender person elected mayor in West Virginia.
6. Vermont state Rep. Taylor Small
Vermont’s Taylor Small won her state House race in 2020 with 41.3 percent, becoming the state’s first trans legislator.
Small was reelected to her seat in 2022 with 41.7 percent of the vote. She represents the Chittenden-6–7 District in Vermont.
7. Colorado state Rep. Brianna Titone
Colorado state Rep. Brianna Titone made history in 2018, flipping a district and becoming the state’s first trans legislator.
Titone made history again in 2022, winning reelection by 19.4 points. Her margin of victory in 2018? 0.8 points.
8. Berea Community School Board member Rebecca Blankenship
In Kentucky, Rebecca Blankenship won her school board election, making history as the state’s first trans elected official.
Blankenship won her election as a write-in candidate in 2022. She serves on the board of Berea Independent School District. She also serves as a state party leader for the Democratic Party of Kentucky.
9. New Hampshire state Rep. Gerri Cannon
New Hampshire state Rep. Gerri Cannon made history in 2018 as one of two of the state’s first trans elected officials.
Cannon represents the Strafford 18th District in the New Hampshire House of Representatives.
10. Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County member-at-large Olivia Hill
Engineer Olivia Hill won an at-large seat on Nashville’s Metro Council in 2023, making history as Tennessee’s first transgender elected official.
Hill told the Tennessee Lookout that she decided to launch her campaign after Virginia state Sen. Danica Roem encouraged her to run for office.
11. Madison Common Council member Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford
Comedian Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford also made history in 2023 with her election to the Madison Common Council, becoming Wisconsin’s first transgender elected official.
Martinez-Rutherford’s race was competitive: she defeated her opponent Brad Hinkfuss by just 54 votes with 50.4 percent.
For more from GIPHY, follow us on @GIPHY on Instagram, Threads, X, and TikTok.
