Alaska Elects Its First Out State Legislators
From left: Ashley Carrick, Jennie Armstrong, and Andrew GrayAlaska has elected its first out state legislators.Jennie Armstrong, a pansexual woman; and Andrew Gray, a gay man; and Ashley Carrick, a bisexual woman, have won their races for the Alaska House of Representatives.
All are Democrats, Armstrong and Gray from Anchorage, Carrick from Fairbanks.Armstrong prevailed over Republican Liz Vazquez in House District 16, while Gray bested two Republicans and a Libertarian in District 20, and Carrick beat two Republicans and a Constitution Party member in District 35.
Under Alaska’s voting system, up to four candidates can run in a general election. Lyn Franks, a lesbian Democrat running in District 18 in Anchorage, appears to have finished out of the running.Alaska is one of four states that had no out members in their legislatures going into Tuesday’s election, the others being Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Dakota.
Kameron Nelson, a gay man, won his race for South Dakota House, restoring LGBTQ+ representation there (the state had a bisexual woman senator several years ago).
